From the collection of the
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Jjibrary
San Francisco, California
2007
linn
NEW MEXICO
HISTORICAL REVIEW
Editors
LANSING B. BLOOM PAUL A. F. WALTER
Associates
PERCY M. BALDWIN GEORGE P. HAMMOND
FRANK T. CHEETHAM THEODOSIUS MEYER, O.F.M.
FRANCE V. SCHOLES
VOLUME XIX
1944
PUBLISHED QUARTERLY BY
THE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF NEW MEXICO
AND
THE UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO
CONTENTS
Page
i>uivii5ER 1, JANUARY, 1944
New Mexico's Wartime Food Problems, 1917-1918 :
II (concl.) .... Geo. Winston Smith 1
New Mexico and the Sectional Controversy, 1846-
1861: IV (concl.) . . Loomis M. Ganaway 55
Book Reviews:
Harper, Cordova and Oberg, Man and Resources
in the Middle Rio Grande Valley . P.A.F.W. 80
Hewett and Fisher, Mission Monuments of
New Mexico L.B.B. 83
Lockwood, Life in Old Tucson . . P.A.F.W. 85
Ames (ed.), A Doctor Comes to California: the
Diary of John S. Griffin . . 1846-47
Frank D. Reeve 86
Necrology : 88
Ira L. Grimshaw; Thomas A. Whelan; Wheaton
Augur; George S. Klock; Herman D. Sears;
Percy Wilson; Frank Faircloth; Sheldon Par-
sons; William Penhallow Henderson.
Editorial Notes 96
NUMBER 2, APRIL, 1944
The Adobe Palace . . . Clinton P. Anderson 97
The Land of Shalam: Utopia in New Mexico
Julia Keleher 123
Two Colonial New Mexico Libraries, 1704, 1776
Eleanor B. Adams 135
New Mexico's Constitution in the Making —
Reminiscences of 1910 . . Thomas J. Mabry 168
NUMBER 3, JULY, 1944
William Kronig, New Mexico Pioneer, I
Charles Irving Jones (ed.) 185
The Spread of Spanish Horses in the Southwest
D. E. Worcester 225
A Lynching at Tucson in 1873 (written by John G.
Bourke) L.B.B. (ed.) 233
OCT 1.2 1945
Page
A Correction France V. Scholes 243
Book Reviews :
Saye, New Viewpoints in Georgia History
P.A.F.W. 247
Mosk, Land Tenure Problems in the Santa Fe
Railroad Grant Area . Frank D. Reeve 249
Velasco (ed.), El Federalista . . . L.B.B. 250
News and Comments :
Historical Society Annual Meeting
Hester Jones and Marjorie Tichy 251
Tips for the Plains Traveler
Wells Fargo Messenger 253
List of Postmasters of Santa Fe (1849 to date) 254
Census Supervisors of New Mexico (1850 to
date) 255
Necrology: P.A.F.W. 256
Fred S. Donnell; Myron B. Keator; Mrs. Na-
poleon B. Laughlin; Bernhardt Robert Britton;
John Walz Catron
NUMBER 4, OCTOBER, 1944
Group of Mescalero Apaches (1908) . . Frontispiece
Indian Justice Irving McNeil 261
William Kronig, New Mexico Pioneer (concl.)
Chas. I. Jones (ed). 271
A Lynching at Tucson in 1873 (written by
J. G. Bourke) (concl.) . . . L.B.B. (ed.) 312
Friar Personnel and Mission Chronology, 1598-1629, I
France V. Scholes and Lansing B. Bloom 319
Juan Martinez de Montoya, Settler and Conquistador
of New Mexico .... France V. Scholes 337
Book Reviews:
Fulton (ed.) Diary and Letters of Josiah Gregg,
II P.A.F.W. 343
Dumke, The Boom of the Eighties in Southern
California L.B.B. 346
Necrology :
Miguel Antonio Otero, II ... P.A.F.W. 349
Errata and Index
/.
Historical 'Bgvi
PALACE OF THE GOVERNORS, SANTA
January 1944
Editors
LANSING B. BLOOM PAUL A. F. WALTER
Associates
PERCY M. BALDWIN GEORGE P. HAMMOND
FRANK T. CHEETHAM THEODOSIUS MEYER, O.F.M.
VOL. XIX JANUARY, 1944 No. 1
CONTENTS
New Mexico's Wartime Food Problems, 1917-1918:
II (concl.) Geo. Winston Smith 1
New Mexico and the Sectional Controversy, 1846-1861 :
IV (concl.) Loomis M. Ganaway 56
Book Reviews :
Harper, Cordova and Oberg, Man and Resources in
the Middle Rio Grande Valley P.A.F.W. 80
Hewett and Fisher, Mission Monuments of
New Mexico L.B.B. 83
Lockwood, Life in Old Tucson P.A.F.W. 85
Ames (ed.), A Doctor Comes to California: the Diary
of John S. Griffin . . 1846-47 . . . Frank D. Reeve 86
Necrology : 88
Ira L. Grimshaw; Thomas A. Whelan; Wheaton Augur;
George S. Klock; Herman D. Sears; Percy Wilson; Frank
Faircloth; Sheldon Parsons; William Penhallow
Henderson.
Editorial Notes 96
The NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW is published jointly by the Historical
Society of New Mexico and the University of New Mexico. Subscription to the
quarterly is $3.00 a year in advance; single numbers, except those which have
become scarce, are $1.00 each.
Business communications should be addressed to Mr. P. A. F. Walter, State
Museum, Santa Fe, N. M. ; manuscripts and editorial correspondence should be
addressed to Prof. L. B. Bloom, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, N. M.
Entered as second-class matter at Santa Fe, New Mexico
UNIVEKSITY PRESS, ALBUQUERQUE, N. M.
NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL
REVIEW
VOL. XIX JANUARY, 1944 No. 1
NEW MEXICO'S WARTIME FOOD PROBLEMS,
1917-1918: A CASE STUDY IN EMERGENCY
ADMINISTRATION
By GEORGE WINSTON SMITH
(Concluded)
IV. FOOD REGULATIONS AND THEIR ENFORCEMENT
While propaganda appeals besought the consumer to
lend support to food-saving, the food administration grudg-
ingly gave compulsion a place in its proposals for wartime
stabilization. Soon after he received authorization in the
Lever Act, Herbert Hoover took steps to remove forcibly the
speculative profits which already had begun to creep into
sales of grain and flour. At first restricting his orders to
millers of wheat and rye, he directed them to secure licenses
from the food administration. All licensees then had to
disclose in frequent reports their average margins of profit.
In determining what was a reasonable profit, the standard
usually taken was the average pre-war normal profit of the
business under free competitive conditions.1 Before the end
of September, 1917, sugar refiners were tied to the licensing
regulations. And a proclamation of President Wilson, dated
October 8, brought in a multitude of trading groups : elevat-
ors, warehouses, importers, millers, manufacturers, and
distributors of all kinds of grain, beans, cottonseed, fresh
fruit, vegetables, and many others. Exempted were those
retailers whose gross sales of food commodities were not
over $100,000 per year, and millers whose establishments
1. MuUendore, 127, 206.
2 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
had a capacity under seventy-five barrels per day.2 After
awhile bakers had to get licenses if they had a monthly
consumption of more than three barrels of flour.3 Dealers
in poultry and eggs were licensed, and, on February 15,
1918, were forbidden to sell hens until April 30 so that there
might be an increase in egg production.4 Toward the end,
the far-reaching influence of licensing extended to farm
implement dealers, who had to get their permits in the sum-
mer of 1918.5
In New Mexico there was a considerable delay before
the state food administration was able to put the licensing
system into operation. That, however, was not due to any
willingness on the part of Administrator Ely to igftore un-
fair trading practices. For, being somewhat influenced by
the muckraking urge of the "progressive" era in politics,
he was soon complaining loudly to food administration offi-
cials in Washington about instances of hoarding and profit-
eering.6 Particular objects of his ire were the small retailers
and jobbers who siphoned off large profits when they mar-
keted the farmers' produce. The farmer, Ely protested,
not only received less than his due, but he paid more than
he should for shipping crates, oil for his pumping plant,
hardware, groceries, and all of his other necessities.7 As
a remedy, Ely suggested the advisability of bringing the
militant Farmers Alliance into New Mexico, and hinted that
he would go as far as Hoover would allow him in organizing
community buying and selling groups. A reply from Wash-
ington discouraged any such radical activities, although it
suggested that a community market system used success-
fully in Quincy, Massachusetts, might be tried in handling
certain products.8 Dutifully, Ely laid aside any plans he
might have had for consumer and producer cooperatives.
2. Ibid., 195-196, 216-217.
3. Santa Fe New Mexican, January 31, 1918.
4. Ibid., February 15, 1918.
5. United States Food Administration, Washington, D. C., to Ralph C. Ely, Santa
Fe, June 12, 1918 (copy), FA6HA3-3345.
6. Id. to id., October 20, 1917 (copy), FA6HA2-3194 ; [Ralph C. Ely], Santa Fe,
to United States Food Administration, Washington, D. C., December 26, 1917, ibid.
7. Id., to Herbert Hoover, Washington, D. C., October 8, 1917, ibid.
8. United States Food Administration, Washington, D. C., to Ralph C. Ely,
Santa Fe, October 15, 1917, (copy), ibid.
WARTIME FOOD PROBLEMS, 1917-1918 3
His administration already was fighting for its life against
the attacks of hostile merchants and politicians. Discretion
would seem to have been his only course, so he stressed
conservation propaganda, and quietly sought to discourage
among New Mexican distributors the practice of advertising
special prices on sugar and flour. Nevertheless, by Decem-
ber it was generally thought that hoarding was bringing
about a shortage of sugar; an increased demand for flour
in wooden barrels had an ominous meaning, while salt,
matches, and other staples began to disappear from the
markets.9 In fact, the woman's auxiliary of the state Coun-
cil of Defense went so far as to send representations to
Herbert Hoover requesting that ration cards be issued for
those commodities that were scarce.10 In reply, the federal
food administrator's office left no doubt about Hoover's
distaste for ration cards. It declared: ". . . He [Hoover]
does not feel that the time has come to use ration cards and
sincerely hopes that conditions will not arise to make this
necessary."11 Already the food administration, in addition
to licensing, was creating a tight network of regulations to
limit consumer consumption, cut down speculative profits,
and stabilize prices. Ration cards could accomplish no
more.
In New Mexico some of the most debatable restrictions
dealt with wheat and flour, and brought business men within
the sphere of still another war agency, the Federal food
administration's United States Grain Corporation. Directed
by Julius H. Barnes it endeavored to eliminate speculative
practices in grain transactions by placing itself, like a great
trading colossus, astride the paths of commerce. It bought
wheat from the producers at a relatively high but stable
price; it stored grain, sold it to millers, and regulated all
other phases of the business.12 Every elevator and mill
licensed by the food administration had to abide by a number
9. Santa Fe New Mexican, January 3, 1918.
10. Deane H. Lindsey, Santa Fe, to Herbert Hoover, Washington, D. C., Decem-
ber 19, 1917, FA6HA2-3193.
11. United States Food Administration, Washington, D. C., to Mrs. W. E.
Lindsey, Santa Fe, December 28, 1917 (copy), ibid.
12. Mullendore, 130.
4 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
of basic rules: there could be no arbitrarily increased
charges for services, wheat could be stored for no longer
than thirty days, and there should be no contracts for the
sale of flour on orders for delivery more than thirty days
in advance of the sale date. Profit margins also were fixed :
millers could make only twenty-five cents per barrel on flour,
and they had to limit themselves to fifty cents per ton on
livestock feed. Nor were they allowed to pay more for
wheat than the fair price set by the government.13 Putting
the pieces of the puzzle together, it is apparent that they
made a pattern of restrictions designed to prevent conges-
tion in the lines of commerce, to keep wheat and flour flow-
ing smoothly from producer to consumer, and to prevent
hoarders from jamming the currents of trade with snags of
self-interest. That there was a well-established chain of
authority is seen in the responsibility of the licensee to the
food administration; below the licensees there were un-
licensed dealers and consumers who, the licensed miller had
to make certain, did not get more than enough flour for
normal sixty day requirements at one purchase, or more
than 70% of their needs of the previous year.14 Such was
the system ; it was not remarkable that within New Mexico
distinctive conditions should make for peculiar hardships in
application.
One outstanding problem in wheat and flour regulation
came from the fact that New Mexico exported large quan-
tities of wheat each year, but shipped in its flour from
Kansas City or other milling centers.15 There were no large
elevators in the state at the beginning of the war. Licensed
grain and flour dealers frequently were merchants who
owned country stores, or who operated small stone mills.
Their customers were usually the more indigent laborers, and
13. Ibid., 134.
14. Ibid., 104-105, 212-213 ; Santa Fe New Mexican, January 28, 1918 ; Question-
naire report, March 23, 1918.
15. Ibid., June 20, 1918. Ely claimed that New Mexico, exported 3,000,000 bushels
of wheat in 1917, and consumed flour made from roughly 2,000,000 bushels. However,
Department of Agriculture statistics didn't agree entirely with him. The conclusion
reached from its compilation was that New Mexico's normal wheat requirement was
3,166,000 bushels, and that the 1917 crop fell 952,000 bushels short of that figure.
There was no disagreement over the fact that large amounts of New Mexican wheat
were sent out of the state, and that large amounts of flour were imported.
WARTIME FOOD PROBLEMS, 1917-1918 5
their market depended upon their ability to undersell Kansas
City flour. Therefore, as early as September, 1917, some
of the small operators hastily came to the conclusion that
profit-restricting regulations would drive them out of busi-
ness. Although grinding only about seventy-five barrels of
flour each day, they had managed to make a living by charg-
ing a profit of at least twice the twenty-five cent maximum
allowed by the regulations. But even at that they had taken
advantage of the transportation cost differential to supply
their local or nearby customers under the Kansas City flour
price.16 They could, they argued, pay the disgruntled New
Mexican farmers more than the price of wheat guaranteed
by the Grain Corporation, grind the grain, extract their
accustomed profit, and sell to the impecunious purchaser at
a fair price.17 Thus, in ignoring the regulations, they would
actually speed the circulation of wheat products from grower
to consumer, and defeat high living costs in the bargain!
There was another peculiarity in New Mexican condi-
tions that complicated the task of regulating the flour and
grain trade. That was the custom of the miller at the open-
ing of a wheat season to collect from farmers (especially
native Indian and Mexican) nearly all the wheat they had
threshed. Some farmers, but very few, had places to store
their wheat ; the rest turned their crop over to the miller or
country merchant to pay for bills they had made the previous
winter and spring. In common parlance the miller or mer-
chant "carried" the farmer from season to season, and felt
that if he did not gather in the wheat at harvest time he
would never be able to collect his accounts. Obviously the
grain and flour rules hurt that kind of trade.18 What was,
for a time, even more of a problem, arose from the fact that
certain mills were licensed while others were small enough
to escape licensing ; that meant communities fifty miles apart
might have a difference of as much as thirty cents a bushel
16. Charles Springer, Santa Fe, to W. S. Gifford, Washington, D. C., September
15, 1917, Council of National Defense Papers.
17. Ralph C. Ely, Santa Fe, to Arthur Pruitt, Roswell, December 14, 1917,
(copy), FA6HA2-3193.
18. L. B. Putney and Co., Albuquerque, to Ralph C. Ely, Santa Fe, November
22, 1917, ibid.; Ralph C. Ely, Santa Fe, to United States Food Administration,
Washington, D. C., December 5, 1917, ibid.
6 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
in the selling price of wheat. It was, therefore, at least a
step in the direction of stabilization when, in February,
1918, all mills — large and small alike — were put under the
licensing system.19
That did not mean, however, that the interests of the
New Mexican grain dealers and millers were forgotten. Led
by R. E. Putney, one of the most aggressive merchants in
the state and a miller of wide experience, the food adminis-
tration's flour and milling division called a meeting in Jan-
uary, 1918, to convince over one hundred leaders of the
New Mexican grain and flour business of the advantages
and necessity of restrictions.20 Putney also tried to improve
the opportunity to persuade New Mexicans that they should
have a milling industry that would more nearly supply their
needs for cereal foods. Instead of sending the profits out-
side the state to millers and to railroads which hauled both
grain and flour, why should not the flour be milled within
the state and the profits retained there?21 Putney then told
the millers that the best answer to the question lay in the
improved efficiency of New Mexican mills. If, to take only
one instance, New Mexico would adopt the uniform basis
for grading grain that existed elsewhere, it would be a long
step toward standardizing both wheat growing and the mill-
ing industry of the state. Wheat would have to come into
the mills clean and no longer would "number one wheat
prices be paid for number three wheat."22
Whether because of Putney's suggestions for heightened
efficiency, or because of lax enforcement of the restrictive
regulations — possibly because of both — the small mills
appeared to flourish during 1918. So successful were they
that an Albuquerque newspaper noted in September that
large millers were protesting at the profits made by the small
19. Questionnaire report, June 20, 1918.
20. Santa Fe New Mexican, January 23, 1918.
21. J6uf.t March 16, 1918 ; Ralph C. Ely, Albuquerque, to George H. Warrington,
Washington, D. C., March 18, 1918, FA6HA2-3193 ; Due to the efforts of the extension
service, at least two efficiently operated cooperative flour mills were installed ; they
supplied large areas in Socorro and Sandoval counties. See, A. C. Cooley, "Fourth
Annual Report . . . December 28, 1918," pp. 61-62, Department of Agriculture
Archives ; Questionnaire report, June 20, 1918.
22. Santa F6 New Mexican, May 29, June 5, 1918.
WARTIME FOOD PROBLEMS, 1917-1918 7
producers.23 The food administration then made something
of an attempt to tighten the restrictions by promulgating
new and still more complex rules.24 In particular, a pledge
card system was put into operation to check abnormally
large sales of wheat mill feeds that supposedly were intended
for chicken feed but which, in reality, were for human
consumption.25 Ely even went so far as to announce that
accounts of flour mills were to be audited by food administra-
tion accountants to learn whether or not the millers were
making excessive profits.26
Inextricably entangled in wheat and flour control was
perhaps the most controversial of all regulations — the so-
called 50/50 rule. Put in force throughout the nation on
January 28, 1918, it required that millers should not grind
wheat, and that wholesale and retail grocers should not sell
wheat flour, unless in equal proportions with a wheat-substi-
tute cereal.27 Substitutes included : hominy, corn meal, oat-
meal, rice, buckwheat flour, potato flour, soya bean flour,
feterita flour, tapioca, and many another.28 Exceptions to
the rule were few, but there were a few common-sense inter-
pretations. For instance, a farmer who already had a
supply of home-ground corn meal might buy wheat flour if
he could present an affidavit to support his statement con-
cerning the amount of substitute he had on hand.29 How-
ever, the 50/50 rule was accompanied by complementary
regulations which intensified its effect. Even if the city-
dweller bought wheat flour and substitutes in equal amounts,
he could get only twenty-five pounds of wheat flour at one
time ; those in rural communities could take away forty-eight
pounds at a single purchase ; and ranchers, twenty-five miles
from the nearest market, could secure twelve pounds for
each person in their households.30 As a climactic measure,
23. Albuquerque Morning Journal, September 11, 1918.
24. Questionnaire report, August 1, 1918.
25. Santa Fe New Mexican, September 24, October 7, 1918.
26. Ibid., July 14, 1918.
27. Mrs. Sophia A. Cordova, Truchas, to Ralph C. Ely, Santa Fe, March 14, 1918,
FA6HA2-3193; Mullendore, 105.
28. Santa Fe New Mexican, March 25, 1918.
29. Ralph C. Ely, Santa Fe. to John W. Hallowell, Washington, D. O., February
25, 1918, (telegram), FA6HA2-3193.
30. Santa Fe New Mexican, April 2, 1918.
8 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
the food administration finally decreed that the maximum
allotment of wheat flour should be six pounds a month for
persons in most areas, with twice that much for special
occupations, as, for example, sheep-herders in camp during
the lambing season.31
It was hard to convince people that they must use
substitutes. The most frequent complaint, and often a just
one, was that there weren't enough of them. Most of those
that were normally grown in New Mexico suffered from the
1917 drought — so much so that Ely had to lower the per-
centage required when the 50/50 rule went into force.32
Because there happened to be quantities of unsold potatoes,
he further weakened the rule by permitting them to be
considered substitutes for twenty days in the ratio of four
pounds to one of wheat flour.33 Nevertheless, that didn't
satisfy the criticism that the food administration was not
limiting the price of substitutes as it did that of wheat.34
Ely asked for a change in the food control act so that the
food administration might have such power, but the answer
was that corn and other coarse grains did not pass largely
through terminal markets where controls were exerted on
wheat and rye.35 To be sure, Herbert Hoover demanded
that wholesalers should stop dealing with retailers who
could not justify with respect to costs the prices they were
charging for substitutes. The most expensive substitute, he
announced, should be at least ten percent under the quota-
tion for wheat flour.36 Ely was willing to agree that many
small dealers who sold to consumers in isolated places were
likely to charge excessive prices. And, likewise, he pointed
out the objectionable practice of avoiding substitutes
81. Ralph C. Ely, Albuquerque, to John W. Hallowell, Washington, D. C., March
30, 1918, (telegram), FA6HA2-3194 ; id. to United States Food Administration, Wash-
ington, D. C., April 5, 1918, FA6-HA2-3193.
32. Id. to id., February 1, 2, 1918, (telegrams), FA6HA2-3194. Stocks of corn on
hand, January 1, 1918 were 64,986 bushels, compared to 89,956 bushels on January
1, 1917. See, United States Department of Agriculture Bureau of Markets Food Sur-
veys (Washington, D. C., 1918) vol. 1, no. 5, pp. 3-5.
33. Questionnaire report, March 23, 1918.
34. Las Cruces Citizen, May 11, 1918 ; Charles Springer, Santa Fe, to George F.
Porter, Washington, D. C., December 5, 1917, Council of National Defense Papers ;
Las Vegas Optic, March 2, 1918.
35. Mullendore, 289-290.
36. Santa Fe New Mexican, February 9, May 10, 1918.
WARTIME FOOD PROBLEMS, 1917-1918 9
by the sale of excessive quantities of wheat flour wholesale
on the plea that deliveries were made under contracts that
had been negotiated before enforcement of the 50/50 rule.
Although the food administration did little to make Hoover's
fiat concerning the price level of substitutes a reality, its
law department did rule that deliveries on prior contracts
were unfair practice.37
Meanwhile, some New Mexican mills began to grind
substitute flour in larger amounts, and others installed the
necessary equipment.38 On April 17, Ely was able to write
Hoover that stores of flour were so good under the 50/50
rule that shipments into New Mexico had stopped.39 Still,
he felt compelled to admit that, if it should lower prices any,
the people would favor price-fixing by the food administra-
tion. By June, substitutes' prices were still high, although
they had begun to fall. If, Ely believed, instead of stocking
up on corn meal and then attempting to force its sale, the
merchants would have invested in several kinds of substi-
tutes, the downward trend would have been more marked.40
But notwithstanding all defects he felt that the 50/50 rule
was observed.41 On the contrary, when the 50/50 rule was
abrogated (August, 1918), it was provided that all flour
manufactured and sold had to be "liberty flour," made of
eighty percent wheat and twenty percent corn. Since under
the superseded 50/50 rule the consumer could buy his flour
and do his own mixing, the likely inference would be that
the 50/50 rule had not been completely successful.42
The 50/50 rule and numerous other regulations affected
markedly the restaurateurs and bakers of New Mexico. To
mention one of the specialized restrictions: after February
24, 1918, every baker had to use at least twenty percent of
37. Ralph C. Ely, Santa Fe, to United States Food Administration, Washington,
D. C., January 30, 1918, FA6HA2-3194 : Law Department, United States Food Admin-
istration, Washington, D. C., to Ralph C. Ely, Santa Fe, January 31, 1918, (telegram
copy ) , ibid.
38. Santa Fe New Mexican, February 7, 19, 1918.
39. Ralph C. Ely, Santa Fe, to Herbert Hoover, Washington, D. C., April 17,
1918, FA6HA2-3193.
40. Questionnaire report, June 20, 1918.
41. Ibid.
42. Albuquerque Morning Journal, September 8, 1918 ; John W. Hallowell, Wash-
ington, D. C., to Ralph C. Ely, Albuquerque, August 29, 1918, (copy), FA6HA3-3345.
10 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
substitute flour in all his products. Bread made under such
conditions could be advertised as "Victory Bread," and so
could cakes, pies, and pastry if they contained one-third sub-
stitute flour. All wheat flour had to be bought in the ratio
of four pounds to one of substitutes ; on April 14 the ratio
was raised to three to one, on September 1 it again was
reduced to four to one, and on November 12 (the day after
the armistice) the requirement was cancelled.43 Before
regulations had been long enforced, Ely heard that some
bakers were reducing the size of their loaves from sixteen
to twelve ounces without a corresponding drop in price;
as a result, the food administration set a maximum price of
ten cents for a twelve ounce loaf.44 To prevent other loop-
holes from developing, it was set forth that hotels, restau-
rants, clubs, and other public eating places which made
their own bakery goods should operate under the bake-shop
regulations. These restaurants and the like also were re-
quired to ration bread to patrons at the rate of two ounces
per serving (about the same as in England), and to serve
no wheat products unless they were specifically requested
to do so by the customers.45 From April to September, 1918,
they were limited to a six pound allotment for every ninety
meals served.46
Bakers, restaurant owners, and indeed all citizens were
interested in the sugar supply. And, in December, 1917,
Ely issued rules which prescribed that it should be sold in
small quantities.47 Confectioners and other non-essential
users were given less than their accustomed quantities, but
with the promise their quotas might be raised if they would
use glucose, honey, and other substitutes.48 Later, however,
several causes combined to make the sugar problem more
serious. The domestic sugar beet crop, the Louisiana cane
output, and the supply from the West Indian islands all were
43. Mullendore, 105-106 ; Santa Fe New Mexican, February 11, March 4, 5, 1918.
44. Ibid., October 7, 1918 ; Questionnaire report, June 20, 1918.
45. Santa Fe New Mexican, January 81, February 5, March 2, May 1, October
14, 1918.
46. Ibid., April 25, 1918.
47. Ibid., December 31, 1917.
48. Ibid., January 2, 1918.
WARTIME FOOD PROBLEMS, 1917-1918 11
less than the estimates. Ravages of war, especially the
destruction of beet sugar factories in France and Italy, had
their effect. An ever-present factor was the large amount
of shipping needed to transport the growing American army
to France.49 Therefore, after July 1, a more rigid control
of distribution to all sugar users was undertaken through
rules enforced upon licensed manufacturers, wholesalers,
and retailers. All principle sugar using trades were classi-
fied into five groups. Manufacturers of candy, soft drinks,
and similar luxury foods were limited to fifty percent of
their normal consumption. Ice cream makers got seventy-
five percent of their needs, while commercial canners were
granted enough for "necessary requirements." Restaurants
and clubs were rationed on the basis of three pounds for
each ninety meals served. Similarly, three pounds (later
two pounds) monthly per person went to householders, with
an extra twenty-five pound per family allowance for home-
canning.50
In contrast to the ration card systems of other countries,
sugar certificates were the means by which the system
operated. At the outset business men were told to report
the amount of sugar they had on hand or in transit; then
their requirements (based upon their previous use of sugar)
were tabulated, and certificates issued to the proprietors of
the numerous types of business establishments: grocery
stores, confectioneries, hotels, bakeries, etc. When making
a purchase, certificates had to be given to the wholesaler
in exchange for sugar. In turn the wholesaler submitted
them to the refiner who, after cancelling them, returned
them to the food administration.51
As might be expected this complicated system of ration-
ing did not work entirely without friction. Certainly there
was a considerable number of certificates issued. Some-
times grocers would receive certificates and then would sell
sugar to bakeries ; the bakery too might receive a certificate
49. Ibid., July 12, 1918.
50. Ralph C. Ely, Albuquerque, to John W. Hallowell, Washington, D. C., August
26, 1918, FA6HA3-3345 ; A large poster: "Rules as to the Use and Sale of Sugar," ibid.
51. Mullendore, 111-112; Questionnaire report, September 1, 1918.
12 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
for its needs, and consequently would duplicate its supply.
Many business houses did not have adequate records of
their previous sales upon which the food administration
could base any accurate quota.52 During- July, no less than
150,000 pounds were distributed upon the presentation of
special certificates for home-canning allotments ; in August,
157,508 pounds went out in the same way.53 Still, in spite
of these evidences of laxity, Ely lauded the loyal coopera-
tion of the merchants which made the system generally
successful. And, in truth, it was the merchant who had to
apply limitations upon the consumers' demands.
Unlike most states, New Mexico had a printed form
which all householders had to fill out when they obtained
sugar. It read as follows :54
Certificate as to the amount of Sugar Purchased from
Grocer
Town
1918
I hereby certify that I have received from the above
grocer pounds of sugar and that this pur-
chase does not give me more than three pounds
per person per month in my family, there being
persons in my household.
Purchaser.
Of course, home consumption certificates did not govern
the retailer's quota; that was set by his pre-ration sales.
The certificate signed by the housewife was simply a method
of bringing home the importance of conservation to the
individual consumer. It also made it easier for the mer-
chant to distribute his supply among his various customers.
Conceivably, a housewife might "repeat" by signing these
certificates in various stores, but it is a tribute to the attitude
52. Ibid., August 1, 1918.
53. Ibid.; A. J. Maloy, Albuquerque, to John W. Hallowell, Washington, D. C.,
August 19, 1918 (telegram), FA6HA3-3345.
54. Certificate printed on 3" x 5" slip of paper. They were first issued in July,
1918, ibid.; See also, Cecil Barnes, "Sugar Distribution to Consumers" (mimeo-
graphed report), FA6HC5-3686.
WARTIME FOOD PROBLEMS, 1917-1918 13
of the New Mexican people that this was not generally
done.55
Beginning August 1, all types of allotments were cut,56
but as new stocks of sugar came in and the war picture
brightened, it was found possible to restore the consumer's
allowance to three pounds per month,57 and all restrictions
were removed soon after the war ended. It is difficult to
assess the final results of sugar rationing. Acting food
administrator, Bush, claimed in October that New Mexico
already had saved over 500,000 pounds of sugar more than
the allotment that the law gave to the state.58 Earlier, Ely
claimed that the average consumption of sugar was not over
forty-five percent of normal, and that the sugar for canning
was only fifty or sixty percent of what generally had been
used before then.59 On the other hand, the number of
certificates issued indicates that the food administration was
quite liberal, and that no one must have been deprived of
sweet foods to any serious degree.
Hoover's food control plans had scarcely been made
public when, because in his opinion the fixing of maximum
prices had been harmful in belligerent European countries,
he promised that aside from wheat and flour he would not
attempt to fix the price of foodstuffs in the United States.60
For the most part his policy followed his statement, but
before the war ended, sugar, rice, cottonseed derivatives,
and several other products had been placed under absolute
55. Ralph C. Ely, Albuquerque, to John W. HaHowell, Washington, D. C.,
August 19, 1918, ibid.; Questionnaire report, September 1, 1918.
56. Santa Fe New Mexican, July 27, 1918.
57. Ibid., November 1, 1918.
58. Albuquerque Morning Journal, October 7, 1918 ; United States Food Adminis-
tration statistics are interesting in this connection. The total certificate pounds of
sugar issued in the state were : July, 940,750 ; August, 1,069,644 ; September, 1,345,596 ;
October, 1,110,777; November, 1,230,675. Allotments per capita were: July, 3.7 Ibs. ;
August, 2.5 Ibs. ; September, 2.5 Ibs. ; October, 2.5 Ibs. ; November, 3.4 Ibs. Compared
to the per capita allotments, the per capita issues were : July, 2 Ibs. ; August, 2.4 Ibs. ;
September, 3 Ibs. ; October, 2.5 Ibs. ; November, 2.8 Ibs. See "Sugar Certificates
Issued in the United States, July- December, 1918," FA48HBB5-24996 ; Joshua Bern-
hardt, A Statistical Survey of the Sugar Industry and Trade of the United States
([Washington], 1920), 96.
59. Ralph C. Ely, Albuquerque, to John W. Hallowell, Washington, D. C.,
April 17, 1918, FA6HA2-3194.
60. Albuquerque Morning Journal, September 8, 1917.
14 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
price control.61 In addition, definite margins of profit were
recommended for "middlemen," and sometimes these were
enforced by an aroused public opinion.62
There were several reasons why it was hard to deal
with the problem of price control in New Mexico. As food
administrator Ely was wont to point out, high prices for
grocery products were the rule in remote localities. This
was due partly to the expense of cartage over long distances.
But also it was owing to the number of transactions in
which the goods were involved before they reached the hands
of the consumer. As an illustration, some canned goods
might be sent by a wholesaler in Albuquerque to a "little
wholesaler" in Estancia, from there they would go to a
retailer in a small mountain hamlet, and then finally to the
consumer. Considering the high profits that were charged
at each stage, an exorbitant price was inevitable. Long
credits might accompany these transactions. For, according
to Ely's observation, wholesalers often competed for busi-
ness not so much on the quality of goods sold or the prices
charged for them but in the credit terms which they were
able to offer.63
Nevertheless, New Mexico grocers appeared eager to
line themselves up behind a drive for reasonable prices. By
January 15, 1918, a total of 4,175 retail grocers signed a
"Retailer's Pledge Card," by which they promised to give
consumers the benefit of fair and moderate prices.64 A
month later the food administration's grocery division sent
blank-forms to the merchants asking them to forward the
cost and selling price on a large number of staple food
commodities.65 Ely wasn't so receptive to a suggestion from
federal food administration officials that he should send a
list of housewives who would periodically report the pre-
61. Santa Fe New Mexican, October 12, 1918.
62. Ibid., October 9, 1918.
63. Ralph C. Ely, Albuquerque, to J. B. Clark, Washington, D. C., July 27, 1918,
FA6HA3-3345 ; id. to United States Food Administration : Williams, Washington, D. C..
July 20, 1918, FA45HAA1-23232.
64. Santa Fe New Mexican, January 15, 1918.
65. M. T. Dunlavy, Santa Fe, to John W. Hallowell, Washington, D. C., February
26, 1918, FA6HA2-3194.
WARTIME FOOD PROBLEMS, 1917-1918 15
vailing retail prices of food articles to Washington.66 He
was opposed also to the proposal that "fair price lists"
should be published in every community as a warning
against those grocers who garnered excessive profits.67 It
was only after the strongest pressure was brought to bear
upon him from Washington that he finally made prepara-
tions to introduce such publications. Not until August was
a beginning made in two counties ;68 even then Ely was not
convinced. The lists, of course, did not set forth inflexible
"ceiling prices." In one column there was printed the
minimum and maximum prices which a retailer might pay
for a number of items with recognition of possible variations
in different retailers' costs due to diversity in the quality
of goods, etc. In the right-hand column of each list were
the prices that the consumer would be asked to pay. Those,
too, might differ from store to store depending upon the
retailer's overhead and other expenses. A number of items
taken from a typical price list, published in Albuquerque on
September 12, 1918, follow :69
Commodity Retailer pays Consumer should pay
Wheat flour (bulk) (per Ib.) 6.80 6.80 .15 over cost
Corn Flour 6.20 9.60 .08 .08%
Cornmeal " " " 5.50 5.85 .07% .08
Sugar granulated 8.35 8.57 .09% .10
Potatoes per pk. 3.35 8.50 .04 .04
Canned tomatoes standard gr. No. 2 can .12 .15 .20
Canned corn .15 .15 .20
Canned peas " " " " " .11 .20 .12% .25
Canned salmon (Alaska pink) 16 oz. No. 1 can .16 2/3 .16 2/3 .20 .25
Evaporated milk (unsweetened) 6 oz. can .04% .05% .05 .07%
Butter creamery tub. print per Ib. .50 .52 .55 .57
Eggs (fresh), (stored) per doz. .60 .60 .60 .70
Lard, pure leaf (in tin) per Ib. 10.24% (sic) .24% .33
Bacon sliced std. grade per Ib. .34 .45 .40 .50
Pork chops per Ib. .40 .40
Ham smoked sliced per Ib. .33 .35 .38 .40
Round steak per Ib. .35 .35
That it might improve its chances for success in price
publication, the state food administration undertook to con-
vince New Mexican business men that they should abandon
long credits, and the all too frequent practice of concealing
66. United States Food Administration, Statistical Division, Washington, D. C.,
to Ralph C. Ely, Albuquerque, April 5, 1918, (copy), ibid.
67. M. T. Dunlavy, Santa Fe, to John W. HaUowell, Washington, D. C., January
21, 1918, ibid.; Ralph C. Ely, Albuquerque, to K. S. Clow, Washington, D. C., May
7, 1918, FA6HA2-3193.
68. K. C. Clow, Washington, D. C., to Ralph C. Ely, Albuquerque, May 15, 1918,
(copy), ibid.; Questionnaire report, September 1, 1918.
69. Albuquerque Morning Journal, September 12, 1918.
16 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
interest payments in the high prices of the goods sold.70
In the opinion of many merchants the arguments against
such practices were reasonable ; some dealers did limit credit
to thirty days, and allowed discounts for cash payment.71
The "cash and carry" system, however, did not become pop-
ular at the time, even though stores sometimes sharply cur-
tailed their delivery services.72 And the system of price
publication too was painfully slow in developing. Not until
September did the state food administration's field secre-
tary spend much time working on the problem with newly
appointed county administrators.73 Even the Washington
office of the administration decided it had better send a
supervisor to help the state administrator with it, and busi-
ness men from outside the state were called in to check
prices.74 Still, for the week of October 26 only five fair
price reports were received from county price adminis-
trators,75 After all efforts had been made, A. J. Maloy of
the grocery division rather hopelessly applied to Washing-
ton for more fair price administrators' blank-reports ; it was
his conclusion that perhaps the fair price administrators
had not reported because they had mislaid completely the
blanks he had sent to them some time before that.76 It
would seem that fair price publication, as it was practised
in New Mexico, left a great deal to be desired.
In the last analysis the effectiveness of the food adminis-
tration's food saving regulations depended upon the manner
in which they were accepted. Ely was certain that although
in the beginning the New Mexican merchants had felt that
the food administration would interfere with them, they
later came around to the opinion that it helped them quite
as much as it hampered them.77 As a matter of fact, he
70. Questionnaire report, September 1, 1918.
71. Ibid.
72. Ibid., June 20, 1918.
73. Ibid., October 1, 1918.
74. United States Food Administration, Washington, D. C., to H. G. Bush,
Albuquerque, October 11, 1918, (copy), FA6HA3-3343.
75. L. F. Jaques, Washington, D. C., to id., November 8, 1918, FA45HAA4-23258.
76. A. J. Maloy, Albuquerque, to United States Food Administration, Washing-
ton, D. C., October 29, 1918, ibid.
77. Questionnaire report, June 20, 1918.
WARTIME FOOD PROBLEMS, 1917-1918 17
went so far in the spring of 1918 as to give the merchants
the main burden of carrying out the regulations. In his
words: he made them agents of the administration "to
enforce the rule," and held them "morally responsible for
deception by customers."78 If the regulations were enforced
it was largely because of such cooperation. Reports of
licensees were submitted to his office, but he took the attitude
that it was the duty of the administration in Washingon to
review them and offer suggestions.79 Until the summer of
1918 he revoked no licenses. On one or two occasions in the
spring of 1918 he used the press to give veiled warning to
transgressors, but no names were published in these warn-
ings and there was no blacklist.80 Several suspected violat-
ors were called in for conferences where they were treated
in "a fatherly or brotherly sort of way." To use Ely's own
expression: he "secured their compliance through their
promises of voluntary cooperation."81 In the same vein,
individual letters were sent out "in many cases" with good
results. For information about complaints, the food admin-
istration usually relied upon volunteers in each community.
Traveling salesmen were enlisted as informal reporters. By
the spring of 1918, however, the administration had one
salaried inspector, and after awhile two others were added
to the staff.82 Even then few penalties were imposed, and
it is doubtful if at times the regulations were consistent
enough to permit detection of violations. As late as August,
1918, Ely was unable to tell whether or not all subject to
the bakery regulations had secured their licenses. Reports
by licensees appeared to be irregular, and he judged that
many failed to report at all. Yet one reason he could not
check upon them was that he knew his list of licensees was
not correct !83
Still, on occasion, Ely was not loath to make a rather
78. Ibid., March 23, 1918 ; Ralph C. Ely, Santa Fe, to John W. Hallowell, Wash-
ington, D. C., February 27, 1918, FA6HA2-3193.
79. Questionnaire report, June 20, 1918.
80. Ibid., March 23, 1918.
81. Ibid., August 1, 1918.
82. Ibid., March 23, 1918.
83. Ibid., June 20, August 1, 1918.
18 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
flashy demonstration of his authority. In late June, 1918,
he closed a confectionery store at Deming because its pro-
prietor, an immigrant who couldn't speak English, made
an untrue report on sugar requirements.84 Another time,
after trying to bring restaurant men of Albuquerque to-
gether for a conference, Ely sent the chief of police after
those who failed to appear.85 During July, 1918, one seed
company's license was cancelled, and another firm lost its
permit temporarily but had it restored when it paid $1250
to the food administration for distribution to charity. In
that case it was learned that the offender had made a profit
of more than one hundred percent on some old stocks.86
However, what was perhaps the most highly publicized en-
forcement incident, proved also to be one of the most
embarrassing for certain state officials. It concerned a large
store of wheat seized by the state food administration on
the charge that the men who owned it had given no satis-
factory explanation of their failure to sell at the govern-
ment's ruling price. By chance the food administration
press service in Washington used the story as the subject
of a national press release which played up the point that
the defendants were two brothers of German extraction. It
made livid propaganda, but, unfortunately for harmony in
the New Mexican war effort, one of the brothers was chair-
man of a county Council of Defense, and a prominent
Republican state office-holder. Charles Springer, as execu-
tive chairman of the state Council of Defense, defended the
brothers against the food administration's accusations. He
asserted that far from hoarding their wheat they previously
had offered their entire stock for distribution as seed grain
among the farmers.87 One of the most flagrant violations
of food regulations was handled directly by Herbert Hoover.
84. Santa Fe New Mexican, July 1. 1918.
85. Ralph C. Ely, Albuquerque, to McBowman (sic) [John McE. Bowman], Wash-
ington, D. C., January 3, 1918, FA6HA2-3194.
86. Questionnaire report, September 1, 1918; United States Food Administration,
Washington, D. C., Press Release no. 1082, July 18, 1918, Press Releases, vol. 11.
87. Charles Springer, Santa Fe, to Arthur H. Fleming, Washington, D. C.,
April 8, 1918, Council of National Defense Papers, CND14-A2(71) ; United States
Food Administration, Washington, D. C., Press Release no. 778, March 23, 1918.
Press Releases, vol. 8.
WARTIME FOOD PROBLEMS, 1917-1918 19
The offender was a large interstate seed company which did
business in both Colorado and New Mexico. Its license was
revoked for an indefinite period for unfair practice in the
pinto bean trade, and it was in effect barred from commerce
for the duration of the war.88 In some respects the most
interesting of all enforcement attempts related to the trade
in ice. During the summer of 1918, a petition from con-
sumers in Albuquerque asked the state food administration
to investigate the high prices then being charged for ice.
Ely acted without delay, and sent out mimeographed ques-
tionnaires to all ice-dealers in the state. Important in these
mimeographed inquiries were compartive price schedules
for the summers of 1917 and 1918. The answers showed
that throughout the state the "ice situation" was relatively
satisfactory. Nevertheless, an extensive hearing was held
on the trade practices of a large Albuquerque ice company.89
V. PROBLEMS OF PRODUCTION AND MARKETING
Whatever efforts might be considered essential to halt
hoarding and rising prices, the certainty remained that
increased food production would be the only real safeguard
against disaster. In spite of the drought there was, within
a month after war began, an auspicious beginning of volun-
tary cooperation. Farmers readily signed agreements to
increase the total acreage under cultivation. In June, 1917,
A. D. Crile of the State College proudly announced that
thirty-three and a third percent more land had been planted
because of the production drive, and still there were hun-
dreds of thousands of postcards going into the mails to urge
farmers to plant acres as yet untilled.1 But the state Council
of Defense and other emergency agencies knew that success
depended upon seed, and so, acting with the support of a
large legislative appropriation, the council's agents began to
88. Ibid., no. 1072, July 15, 1918, vol. 11.
89. MS. petition from the people of Albuquerque, FA132AA1-38026 ; "Compara-
tive Price Schedule" (mimeographed), ibid.; "Minutes of Hearing of Southwestern
Brewery and Ice Co.," ibid.; Ralph C. Ely, Albuquerque, to United States Food
Administration, Washington, D. C., July 7, 1918, ibid.
1. Santa Fe New Mexican, June 19, 1917.
20 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
extend loans to those who could buy seed in no other way.2
Notes payable to the state disbursing officer on or before
November 30, 1917, carried provisions for an interest charge
at the rate of six percent per annum. Each loan was secured
by a mortgage on the crop, and such other security as could
be had.3 After receiving the note and mortgage, the financial
agent might issue the farmer an order upon the seed dealer
or distributing agency designated by the county Council of
Defense. In that way, according to incomplete statistics
gathered by the extension service, at least 161,824 pounds
of beans, 47,262 pounds of seed corn, 86,292 pounds of seed
potatoes, and 345,000 pounds of wheat were distributed in
1917.4 Most of that large amount was sold by business men
at cost, and county agricultural agents aided too by locating
seed. In Bernalillo county, 290 farmers were assisted; in
San Miguel county, 486 ; and in Coif ax county, 372. 5
As the drought continued to parch the land during the
later growing season, some of the farmers complained that
it was unfair to make the mortgages upon other property
than crops. They believed it nothing less than simple justice
that their notes should have contained provisions for can-
cellation and return to the maker in the event of crop failure
not due to the fault of the farmer himself.6 But at a
conference of the Council of Defense and county agricultural
agents in the fall of 1917, it was decided that the existing
type of interest bearing note was essential to the plan, and
that it would increase the self-respect of the farmers. The
State, however, should extend the time for the payment of
seed loans when the farmer could not meet his obligations.
Local organizations, the conference felt, might be used by
the farmers but wherever possible "the farmer should be
made to feel that the State was loaning him the money and
2. Phil H. Lenoir, Santa Fe, to George F. Porter, Washington, D. C., May 11,
1917, (telegram), Council of National Defense Papers; Final Report of the New
Mexico Council of Defense, 21-23.
3. "Letter of Instruction Sent Each Financial Agent, Santa Fe, May 15, 1917,
from Governor" (copy), Council of National Defense Papers.
4. A. C. Cooley, Third Annual Report, p. 39.
5. Ibid., p. 38.
6. Union County War Committee, Clayton, to W. E. Lindsey, Santa Fe, May 18,
1917, in Santa Fe New Mexican, May 21, 1917.
WARTIME FOOD PROBLEMS, 1917-1918 21
that the state was his greatest benefactor."7 Some of the
farmers who had borrowed gratified the Council of Defense
by paying at least part of the principal, but many had to
extend their loans at least in part.8
Results of the 1917 crop were mixed. Total production
figures undoubtedly broke all existing records for corn,
wheat, beans, and other crops. The wheat crop was approxi-
mately 900,000 tons higher than the average production of
the previous ten years. Still the crops were somewhat dis-
appointing. In Torrance county, bean yields per acre were
no more than one-third of what had been anticipated. W. A.
Gardner, the county agent for Lincoln county, reported that
practically all the beans planted there had been lost in the
string-bean stage. Although the bean acreage in Bernalillo
county was three times larger the total crop was slightly
under that of 1916.9
At first sight, 1917 agricultural prices would seem to
have been very satisfactory,10 but any such opinion would
have to disregard rising costs of production and the drought
conditions which reduced the per acre yield. Failure to
conquer the problem of rising living costs by the fall of 1917
did not make the farmers any more eager to survey their
drought-seared acres with complacency. Specific discontent
over the government's fixing of the price of wheat was their
most intense grievance. In August, Charles Springer, execu-
tive secretary of the Council of Defense, wrote a cheerful
letter to county financial agents in which he assured them
that they could begin a new campaign to encourage wheat
acreage with the promise that the food control act recently
passed by Congress would fix the minimum price of wheat
for the next year's crop at $2.00.11 What he failed to con-
sider was that even six weeks before then wheat had been
selling in Clovis for $2.50 per bushel,12 and at that time the
7. Ibid., October 13, 1917.
8. "Report of the State County Agent Leader for the month of October, 1917,"
p. 5, Department of Agriculture Archives.
9. Ibid., pp. 1-4 ; Santa Fe New Mexican, December 12, 1917 (citing the Portales
Valley News.)
10. Ibid., October 11, 1917.
11. Ibid., August 17, 1917.
12. Ibid., July 31, 1917.
22 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
staple was bringing corresponding prices elsewhere. By the
end of July, even at that figure, only 50,000 bushels had been
placed on the market in Curry county, with an estimated
450,000 bushels held back for higher prices.13 In other
words, the New Mexican farmer already had felt the specu-
lative pull of wartime economy. Consequently, when the
United States Grain Corporation fixed the "fair price" of
wheat at the Kansas City price ($2.15) less the freight from
New Mexico to Kansas City, the implied drop of fifty to
seventy cents a bushel from the prevailing price was in the
farmers' opinion an intolerable discrimination.14 Some of
them began to feed their wheat to horses and cattle instead
of shipping in other feeds.15 Food Administrator Ely stated
the case of the New Mexican wheat growers in a letter to
Julius H. Barnes, head of the Grain Corporation, but Barnes
refused to consider any special price adjustment, declaring
it would be disastrous "to jeopardize the general plan of
wheat price fixing because of special conditions in New
Mexico."16
In the face of general discontent it was rather difficult
to encourage increased planting of winter wheat. The
Council of Defense, however, distributed red, white, and
blue posters, and urged the patriotic duty of planting large
acreage.17 In some areas there was, in spite of opposition
to the government's price, a favorable response. For ex-
ample, in the Pecos Valley, there were several thousand
new acres; more winter wheat was planted in Santa Fe
county than ever before, and acreage in Dona Ana county
increased five-fold by the spring of 1918.18 Money for seed
again was provided by loans from the Council of Defense.
Also the Federal Land Bank of Wichita loaned well over
13. Loc. rit.
14. Mullendore, 138, 149-151 ; Albuquerque Morning Journal, September 20, 1917 ;
Ralph C. Ely, Santa Fe, to United States Food Administration, Washington, D. C.,
October 10, 1917, FA6HA1-3087.
15. Charles Springer, Santa Fe, to W. S. Gifford, Washington, D. C., September
14, 1917, (telegram), Council of National Defense Papers.
16. Santa Fe New Mexican, September 19, 1917.
17. Ibid., August 31, 1917.
18. Ibid., December 14, 1917, April 11, June 20, 1918 ; Albuquerque Morning
Journal, September 21, 1917.
WARTIME FOOD PROBLEMS, 1917-1918 23
two million dollars on New Mexican lands by May, 1918.19
As a year earlier, the county agents began in January to
survey the needs for spring wheat seed.20 In that month
too, Governor Lindsey's appeal for more production, "A
Foreward to the People of New Mexico," held out a hope
for better weather. Heavy snow, he noted, had ended the
drought.21
Nevertheless, dry weather, though not as bad as in
1917, continued to be a discouraging factor. By April it
had resulted in a heavy abandonment of winter wheat in
the eastern part of the state, and four months between
January and September showed precipitation deficiencies.
To be sure, during August some districts actually had an
excess of rain, and there beans moulded in low-lying fields ;
but they were scattered areas. Wheat smut was another
menace. In June, Department of Agriculture statistics
showed that, whereas the state had 175,000 acres in winter
wheat compared to 134,000 the year before, conditions were
sixty-eight percent of perfect compared to seventy-five per-
cent of average in 1917.22 Nor did New Mexican farmers
feel any better about the general price policy ; there was no
major alteration in it, although in June, when freight rates
were raised, wheat prices were boosted a few cents per
bushel to compensate for the change.23 Yet, by and large,
disaster was averted when, in the end, the crop yields were
not so bad after all. Beans remained about the same as in
1917, while corn was up 642,000 bushels, and wheat was one
third higher.24 Ironically enough, just as the crops came in,
New Mexican farmers were faced with new problems
brought by the end of the war. Some farmers found credit
tight when they attempted to finance their winter wheat
19. Santa Fe New Mexican, May 30, 1918.
20. A. C. Cooley, Fourth Annual Report, pp. 31-32 ; "Report of the State County
Agent Leader . . . January, 1918," passim, Department of Agriculture Archives.
21. Deming Headlight, February 8, 1918.
22. Santa Fe New Mexican, June 12, 1918 ; Albuquerque Morning Journal,
September 12, 1918 ; Rupert L. Stewart, State College, to Ralph C. Ely, Albuquerque,
June 14, 1918, FA132AA1-38029.
23. A. C. Cooley, Fourth Annual Report, p. 32; Santa F£ New Mexican, June
22, 1918.
24. Ibid., October 12, 1918.
24 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
planting- in the fall of 1918. Julius H. Barnes of the Grain
Corporation warned that if any new supplies of grain were
opened it would necessitate congressional appropriations to
make effective the guaranteed price of wheat, and that
growers who followed their usual practice of holding back
wheat might find the market collapsing around them.25 So,
everything considered, the first World War was not a short-
cut to Utopia for New Mexico's wheat farmers.
Like those who raised wheat, the producers of beans
also had to make serious decisions. The harvest which
preceded the war year of 1917 was one of the most encourag-
ing in history. So large a crop bringing high prices allowed
many farmers to pay off all their debts and have enough
money left over to buy some luxuries.26 Not a small number
found themselves growing wealthy. Pinto beans had been
almost unknown as a commercial crop only a few years
before that, but capable of being raised where there was
low rainfall, twenty-five million pounds were grown in the
United States during 1916. In 1917 there was great expan-
sion all over the country,27 and in New Mexico the Council
of Defense made every effort to expand bean acreage. Ap-
proximately $80,000 was made available to farmers in the
"value of seed distributed and other assistance given."28
Drought which retarded the beans during the growing
season, also placed them in hazard of an early frost. Yet
in spite of other complaints that too much land had been
planted for its most effective use, the crop of harvested
beans bulked large.29 Mountainair, "capital" of the bean
growing country, was experiencing a business boom. In
that vicinity smiling bean farmers built homes, and priced
new automobiles.30 At first prices remained high; from
Clayton there was a report that, compared to the pre-war
25. Ibid., October 18, 1918; Earl J. Wilson, Hillsboro, to Ralph C. Ely, Albu-
querque, September 21, 1918, FA132AA1-38027.
26. Albuquerque Morning Journal, April 13, 1917.
27. Frank Macy Surface, The Grain Trade During the World War (New York,
1928), 361-363.
28. Charles Springer, Santa Fe, to W. S. Gifford, Washington. D. C., November
17, 1917, Council of National Defense Papers ; Questionnaire report, September 1, 1918.
29. Albuquerque Morning Journal, September 27, 1917.
30. Ibid., September 4, 1917.
WARTIME FOOD PROBLEMS, 1917-1918 25
price of three cents, beans were bringing from nine to ten
and one-half cents per pound. A county agent reported from
Colfax county that farmers expected at least ten cents per
pound f .o.b. at their shipping point.31 What they failed to
consider was that the amount of beans raised in the country
had increased from about nine to twenty million bushels.
Production of pinto beans alone was forty-five percent over
that of 1916.32
Sensing a marketing problem, Ely late in September
asked Herbert Hoover to arrange contracts with the army,
navy, and European allies,33 and Arthur C. Ilfeld of the
Charles Ilfeld Co. (wholesale grocers at Las Vegas) was
chosen by a group of producers and buyers to be the head
of the state food administration's new bean producers'
division.34 The food administration had two objectives in
bean marketing: first, to establish better relations between
the buyers and producers, and, second, to bring about a
standard marketable product. With regard to the second
objective, the buyers and producers were able to decide upon
certain regulations for the trade: all beans should be sold
upon the basis of re-cleaned beans, all beans should be
shipped in one hundred pound net weight sacks, and gross
handling expense including the buyer's profit should not be
more than five percent for choice re-cleaned beans.35 Grow-
ers, however, were fearful that wholesale dealers, as in the
past, would buy up the crop at a low figure. Since the farm-
ers had no organization for marketing the beans, they had
for years been at the mercy of local merchants. Therefore,
with an eye to former practices, Charles Springer suggested
to Walter S. Gifford, head of the national Council of Defense,
that a government purchasing committee should buy through
local purchasing agents directly from the producers. County
Councils of Defense and county financial agents of the state
81. Santa Fe New Mexican, October 26, 1917 ; State county agent leader's report
for October, 1917, p. 2.
32. Mullendore, 302.
33. Ralph C. Ely, Santa Fe, to Herbert Hoover, Washington, D. C., September 22,
1917, (telegram), FA6HA1-3087.
34. Santa Fe New Mexican, October 20, 1917.
35. Ralph C. Ely, Santa Fe, to Herbert Hoover, Washington, D. C., October
20, 1917, (telegram), FA6HA1-3087.
26 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
council could have all the beans re-cleaned, sacked, and
collected at shipping points upon the government's order.38
Though at the time the suggestion was not accepted favor-
ably, at least it foreshadowed later governmental action.
Behind the vexations of bean marketing loomed an
impressive problem: the refusal of consumers in eastern
cities to take the colored pinto bean so long as they could
get the white navy bean. Especially in New England and
the middle Atlantic states there were few calls for pintos,
while the demand for white beans all but exceeded the supply.
Even granting that marjcets in the west and middle west
took large amounts of the colored beans, the increased supply
(Colorado's crop was four hundred percent greater than
that of 1916, and New Mexico's between fifty and a hundred
percent larger) meant that there were some three thousand
carloads above actual needs west of the Alleghenies.37 The
federal food administration tried advertising; it told the
eastern housewife that pintos were just as nutritious as
white beans, and pointed out that in times of soaring food
prices they were thirty-five to forty percent cheaper.
Pamphlets were sent out through local food administration
outlets in New York City, Boston, and Philadelphia, while
several large distributing houses like Montgomery Ward,
Sears Roebuck, etc. listed the variety in their catalogues.38
But there were few signs of favorable results from all the
propaganda.
As the autumn of 1917 advanced, the New Mexican bean
farmers tended to become worried and disillusioned. On
the average, the yield per acre was low — about one hundred
fifty pounds. Some fields had been lost altogether through
hail and dry weather, and the production costs for the rest
were not less than $5.00 per hundred pounds.39 Hopeful
rumors that the United States government would fix the
36. Charles Springer, Santa Fe, to W. S. Gifford, Washington, D. C., August 21,
1917, Council of National Defense Papers.
37. United States Food Administration, Washington, D. C., Press Release No. 552,
December 23, 1917. Press Releases, vol. 6.
38. Surface, 364 ; Mountainair Independent, January 17, 1918.
39. Simon Vorenberg, Wagon Mound, to Ralph C. Ely, Santa F6, November 1,
1917, (copy), FA6HA1-3087.
WARTIME FOOD PROBLEMS, 1917-1918 27
price of beans as it had that of wheat were disproved in
October when the federal food administration informed Ely
that although bean dealers would be licensed, the price of
beans would not be fixed "at present."40 Another spark of
optimism flared when the army and navy announced they
were making contracts for pinto beans, but flickering enthu-
siasm died quickly when the contracts designated the rela-
tively disappointing price of $7.75 per hundredweight.41
And what made the news far more discouraging were the
circulars distributed by local dealers to the effect that the
government purchases would rule prices, and that New
Mexican merchants, therefore, would offer no more than
$6.50 per hundred pound sack.42 County agents of the
extension service then met with farmers in "protest meet-
ings"; appeals were sent to Ely, who, in turn, took the
grievances to a November bean conference in Washington.48
Meanwhile, suggestions of all kinds were made in the New
Mexican press ; typical was one that New Mexico pinto bean
growers should send demonstrators to each of the army
camps to popularize the pintos among the troops.44 By
early January, however, little if anything had been done.
Ely, nettled by his failure in the east, tried without success
to get loans on the security of beans in storage from the
Wichita farm loan bank.45 To make matters worse, Herbert
Hoover wrote a letter to state representative Martin D.
Foster which was published in the Mountainair newspaper.
In this he mentioned that five years earlier "practically all
the farmers stated that three cents per pound would make
a profitable crop for them." Then, continuing, he reasoned :
"It hardly seems possible that the expenses of growing have
advanced three hundred percent in New Mexico but we do
40. United States Food Administration, Washington, D. C., to Ralph C. Ely, Santa
Fe, October 20, 1917, (teelgram copy), ibid.
41. Simon Vorenberg, Wagon Mound, to Ralph C. Ely, Santa Fe, November 1,
1917, (copy), ibid.
42. "Report of the State County Agent Leader for the Month of November,
1917," pp. 2, 6, 9, Department of Agriculture Archives.
43. Santa Fe New Mexican, November 8, 1917.
44. Ibid., December 18, 1917.
45. Ralph C. Ely, Santa Fe, to United States Food Administration, Washington,
D. C., January 2, 1918, (telegram), FA6HA2-3193.
28 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
know that the selling price of beans has increased from one
hundred percent to two hundred percent in the past few
years, and as the public becomes better acquainted with this
bean, we believe that its price will more nearly approach
that of the white bean." If Hoover sought to convince irate
bean owners he was mistaken. Scathing editorial comment
accompanied the letter. Five years before, the editorial
recalled, when beans sold at from two to three cents per
pound, corn was selling at $1.50 per hundred weight; in
1918 corn was selling at $4.50. Flour had risen from $3.00
to $9.00 per hundred in the same interval of time. It con-
cluded :46
Machinery, clothing, meats, and practically
everything the farmer has had to buy, while grow-
ing these same beans, have advanced in the same
proportion. And yet the pinto bean grower ac-
cording to Mr. Hoover should be satisfied to accept
the 6 cents a pound he is offered for his beans . . .
Our farmers are anxious to help in every way
possible in the present crisis, but that their prod-
ucts should go begging at less than actual cost of
production, while they must pay so much higher
prices proportionately, for their necessities, does
not set well, nor tend to increase production.
Whether because of the indignation of the bean grow-
ers, or in spite of it, the United States Food Administration
did succeed in marketing the bean surplus. The adminis-
tration's Grain Corporation announced it would buy seventy-
five percent of the bean crop at $8.80 per hundredweight,
provided it was offered re-cleaned, standardized beans, in
new sacks. The price would be f.o.b. at all points of ship-
ment in New Mexico and Arizona.47 That this was an
important boon to the farmers there can be no doubt; a
month before that, two carloads of beans at Estancia and
Moriarty had sold for $6.75, and the market was dull at the
prevailing $7.00-7.50 price.48 Yet there was no wave of
jubilation after the Grain Corporation's announcement.
46. Mountainair Independent, January 17, 1918.
47 Santa Fe New Mexican, February 13, 1918.
48. Ibid., January 7, 1918.
WARTIME FOOD PROBLEMS, 1917-1918 29
Only with the greatest misgivings did many growers surren-
der their hopes for ten cent beans.49 Better judgment, how-
ever, soon triumphed, and the Santa Fe New Mexican gave
the common-sense attitude of many when it asserted : " . . .
the bean grower isn't going to be meticulous about a fair-
price — always provided that the fellow he sells his beans to
isn't going to make the big rake-off after the farmer has had
all the grief."50 By the middle of July, the food administra-
tion had contracted for forty-three million pounds of pinto
beans in the United States. No less than 9,174,300 pounds
had been shipped from New Mexico by then. But only
5,462,557 pounds were shipped under contract; many
growers merely delivered their beans to food administration
shippers without signing contracts.51 There were a few
instances of non-cooperation, as, for example, the case of two
dealers who insisted that ten percent profit was insufficient
for their services in cleaning, bagging, and marketing.52
As a final word on bean production it is interesting to note
that with characteristic optimism the New Mexican farmers
planted another large bean acreage in 1918. To aid them,
the food administration procured and stored quantities of
selected seed which it sold at nine cents per pound, cash in
advance. This seed was distributed from Charles Ilf eld and
Co. at Las Vegas, and from the Isbell New Mexico Elevator
Company at Willard.53
Perhaps a less important but no less bothersome market-
ing problem concerned the broom-corn raised in New Mex-
ico. With the permission of Administrator Ely broom-corn
was planted in some places, especially in Curry county, as a
crop necessary to hygienic welfare. When the time came to
49. Ralph C. Ely, Albuquerque, to [George H.] Warrington, Washington, D. C.,
March 18, 1918, FA6HA2-3194 ; id. to Herbert Hoover, Washington, D. C., June 26,
1918, FA6HA3-3345 ; Santa Fe New Mexican, March 2, 1918.
50. Ibid., February 12, 1918.
51. Ibid., July 18, 1918.
52. [K. P.] Kimball, Washington, D. C., to Ralph C. Ely, Albuquerque, March
19, 1918, (telegram copy), FA6HA2-3194.
53. O. H. Liebers, Denver, to "Newspapers and Bankers," April 22, 1918,
(mimeographed), FA132AA1-38029 : "Federal Food Administrator," Albuquerque, to
Santa Fe Land and Development Co., Chicago, May 3, 1918, (copy), ibid.; id. to
Charles Ilfeld Co., et al., Las Vegas, etc., April 27, 1918, (copy), ibid.; id. to M. R.
Gonzales, East Las Vegas, April 27, 1918, (copy), ibid.
30 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
market the crop in the fall of 1917, local buyers of broom-
corn offered the farmers only from $125 to $200 per ton,
but because of the county Farm Bureau it was known that
it was bringing as high as $325 on the large markets. Con-
sequently, many were able to get higher prices with the
cooperation of the food administration and Department of
Agriculture which negotiated with dealers in New York and
elsewhere to take the product directly from the growers. As
an aftermath, one Curry county dealer was haled before the
district court on the charge that he had engaged in monopoly
practices to hold prices down below market levels. Three
farmers testified against him before the grand jury, and it
indicted him on the basis of monopoly that was presented.
But the defendant's lawyers then presented a demurrer, and
the presiding judge threw the case out of court. Thus
unsuccessfully ended the farmers' battle with the broom-
corn monopolist. But they had won a larger victory. Their
marketing organizations were beginning to allow them to
cut through the strangling limitations of local marketing
controls.54
Drought, which was ever a portentous factor in New
Mexico's wartime food problems, aifected another of the
state's vital enterprises — stock raising. It is true that, in
spite of the weather, livestock increased in 1917; mules,
horses, hogs, and cattle all were more numerous.55 But
nonetheless, during the fall of 1917, the withered range
forced drastic measures in some regions. In Lea county,
for example, practically all the stock was removed in Sep-
tember, and many families prepared to migrate.56 With the
drought unbroken at the end of the year, hundreds of
54. R. E. Putney, Albuquerque, to E. Peterson, Clovis, May 11, 1918, (copy),
ibid.; Ralph C. Ely, Albuquerque, to id., May 13, 1918, (copy), ibid.; id. to Llata,
Lowenberg, and Schlegel, Inc., New York City, June 21, 1918, (telegram copy), ibid.;
id. to Frederick M. Stone, Washington, D. C., June 11, 1918, ibid.; M. T. Dunlavy,
Santa Fe, to Julius Barnes, Washington, D. C., November 28, 1917, ibid.; E. Peterson,
Clovis, to A. C. Cooley, State College, August 24, 1918, in "Broom Corn-Special
Material," p. 410, Department of Agriculture Archives ; "Report of the State County
Agent Leader for the Month of December, 1917," p. 3, ibid.; State county agent
leader's report for October, 1917, p. 2.
55. Santa Fe New Mexican, February 6, 1918.
56. W. L. Elser, State College, to W. M. Cook, Washington, D. C., December 29,
1917, Department of Agriculture Archives.
WARTIME FOOD PROBLEMS, 1917-1918 31
thousands of cattle were leaving the state.57 What at first
seemed to be a mild winter gave a little encouragement, but
on January 9-10, a heavy blizzard piled up snowdrifts five
to eight feet high, and after it came severe cold which
added to the losses of stockmen in northern parts of the
state.58 Rumor had it that many cowmen were so discour-
aged that they had just about decided to give up herefords
for angora goats whose fleece could be used as mohair for
covering airplane wings a new industry.59
What was to be done for the stockmen ? It was a query
which had several answers. In its own behalf the New Mex-
ico Cattle and Horse Growers' Association decided that
overhead expenses might be cut by using the drought as
an argument in securing the reduction of a proposed ten per-
cent increase in the tax valuation of cattle.60 And, adopting
another approach, it cooperated with the state Council of
Defense and county extension service agents to secure a
sizeable state appropriation for a fight against predatory
animals and rodents.61 To take advantage of all available
pasture, the number of sheep permitted to graze in the
national forest was increased from 100,000 in 1917 to
130,000 in 1918.62 Self-reliant ranchers began to contract
for grass and feed in Kansas and Missouri to protect their
herds from starvation.63 In the summer of 1918 such ship-
ments continued, but then they were mostly to points in
Texas where there had been heavy rains and the grass was
in good shape.64 Both the food administration and the
Council of Defense worked hard to requisition railroad cars
for the cattle. By November, 1917, 3,225 cars had already
been secured. In the southern section of the state, the Santa
Fe railroad granted preferential handling to cattle moved
in the critical period. At the same time local embargoes
57. Ralph C. Ely, Santa F£, to United States Food Administration, Washington,
D. C., January 3, 1918, FA6HA2-3193.
58. Santa Fe New Mexican, December 29, 1917, January 15, 1918.
59. Ibid., December 14, 1917.
60. Ibid., November 20, 1917, January 2, 1918.
61. Final Report New Mexico Council of Defense, 39-63.
62. Santa Fe New Mexican, February 16, 1918.
63. Ibid., May 27, 1918.
64. Ibid., July 16, 1918.
32 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
were laid against the movement of livestock from territories
where there was an adequate supply of food for them.65
Government lists were prepared and shown to farmers who
desired buyers for their cattle or areas where pasturage
could be found.66 A proposal to send cattle into Mexico for
grazing was discouraged by the food administration in
Washington, chiefly on the ground that turbulent conditions
in the Mexican states, and lack of responsible control of the
states by the central Mexican government would make for
insecurity if not worse.67
From another angle the problem of saving New Mexico's
cattle was attacked by an effort to increase the food supply
of cattle within the state. Scarcity and the high price of
cattle feed was the greatest obstacle. In November, 1917,
representatives of the Panhandle and Southwestern Cattle-
men's Association, Deming District, informed Herbert
Hoover that the price of cotton-seed products was so exces-
sive that cattlemen would not be able to feed their stock.68
Besides, New Mexican owners were having great difficulty
in getting cotton-seed cake from Texas at any price. Pri-
orities on shipment were secured, and E. A. Peden of Hous-
ton, state food administrator in Texas, was able to offer cake
requisitioned by the food administration to cattle feeders
at $51.00 per ton, f .o.b. Galveston.69 That was considerably
under the market price, although it was not until October,
1918, that the price of cotton-seed products was definitely
fixed, and jobbers were limited to a margin of four percent
profit.70 The task of bringing the feed into the state was not
a small one, considering that at least one-third of New Mex-
ico's million and three quarters head of cattle were going
65. United States Food Administration, Washington, D. C., Press Release no.
427, November 5, 1917. Press Releases, vol. 5.
66. State county agent leader's report for November, 1917, p. 8.
67. M. T. Dunlavy, Santa Fe, to John H. Hallowell, Washington, D. C., Decem-
ber 19, 1917, FA6HA2-3194 ; United States Food Administration, Washington, D. C.,
to Ralph C. Ely, Santa Fe, December 12, 1917, (copy), ibid.
68. Santa Fe New Mexican, November 5, 1917.
69. United States Food Administration, Washington, D. C., Press Release no.
499, December 1, 1917. Press Releases, vol. 5; Ralph C. Ely, Santa Fe, to United
States Food Administration, Washington, D. C., December 20, 1917, FA6HA2-3194 ;
Santa Fe New Mexican, November 15, 1917.
70. Albuquerque Morning Journal, October 23, 1918.
WARTIME FOOD PROBLEMS, 1917-1918 33
to have to be fed.71 It was made somewhat less expensive
when the extension service, the state food administration,
and the New Mexico State Corporation Commission jointly
succeeded in getting a reduction of one-half in freight rates
on all feed shipments into the drought-stricken areas.72
Ingenuity also uncovered new emergency feed. Chopped
yucca came into common use, while an appliance similar to
a gasoline blow-torch burned the spines from cactus so that
it might be fed to cattle. Sotol and beargrass were found by
tests at the State College to have value as feed. Shredding
machines, necessary to prepare these plants, were put on the
market, and county agents assisted stockmen in getting
them.73 Nor did the services of the extension organization
stop there. In 1917 alone, 48,000 cattle were vaccinated for
black-leg. It assisted in bringing in nearly five hundred
head of pure-bred or high grade stock for breeding pur-
poses ; one milk testing association was organized, and one
hundred and eight silos were built as a result of agents'
activities.74 Still another change was sought in New Mex-
ico's production habits. Quite the same as in the case of
wheatflour, New Mexico had been accustomed to import
three quarters of its beef from outside the state. Cattle
commonly were raised to the age of one or two years, then
shipped outside the state to fatten. Therefore, the advan-
tages of feeding, finishing, and home marketing of meats
was proposed as the chief topic for discussion at a retail
butchers' and grocers' conference held under the auspices
of the state food administration in Albuquerque on Decem-
ber 27-28, 1917.75 Three animal husbandry experts from
the State College made addresses and gave demonstrations.
Of course, it was highly advisable to avoid shipping hogs
and cattle to eastern markets and then to ship the product
back when railroads could hardly stand the strain. But the
drought continued to be the limiting factor for the remain-
der of the war.
71. Santa Fe New Mexican, November 15, 1917.
72. A. C. Cooley, Fourth Annual Report, p. 17.
73. Ibid., pp. 53-54 ; Santa Fe New Mexican, February 15, 1918.
74. A. C. Cooley, Third Annual Report, p. 29.
75. Santa Fe New Mexican, December 26, 1917, January 7, 1918.
34 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
One of the elements in production costs that plagued
farmers most was labor supply. It was not a problem
peculiar to agriculture ; coal mining, railroading, lumbering,
and other essential New Mexico industries felt it. As a mat-
ter of fact, the use of school boys and girls helped the situa-
tion in agriculture to at least a small degree. From the
earliest days of the war, J. H. Wagner, superintendent of
public instruction, was engaged in enlisting young people
for farm work. Simultaneously, he was director of the
department of education and labor of the Council of Defense,
federal state director of the United States Public Service
Reserve, and state director of the Boys Working Reserve.76
Particularly in the Boys Working Reserve many able-bodied
high school youths were enlisted for agricultural service.
During the 1918 vacation period, 860 boys and 809 girls
were employed, and received wages that totalled over
$150,000. Each of these volunteers was entitled to wear
the "Badge of Honor of Soldiers of the Soil."77 Boys and
Girls Clubs under the auspices of the extension service also
were busy. In 1918, it was estimated that they cultivated
1,588,395 square feet of garden, and that from this they
canned nearly 11,500 quarts of garden produce.78 Open
markets were set up, especially in Santa Fe, where the
gardeners could bring their goods for sale or exchange.79
In cooperation with the Council of Defense, the state food
administration appointed Mrs. Isaac Barth to be the head
of a home garden division, and under her direction over
three thousand plots were planted in 1918.80 A careful
effort was made to see to it that no vegetables or fruit
spoiled because of faulty preservation methods or lack of
labor. In September, 1917, as an illustration, the state food
administration and other agencies worked together to save
thousands of pounds of peaches in San Juan county. Scores
of home-made evaporators were built with the help of school
76. Final Report New Mexico Council of Defense, 25.
77. Santa Fe New Mexican, March 9, October 17, 1918.
78. Charles Orchard Smith, "Report of Boys and Girls Club Work— 1918,'
Department of Agriculture Archives.
79. Santa Fe New Mexican, May 4, July 9, 1917.
80. Ibid.. July 1, 1918 ; Questionnaire report, March 23, 1918.
WARTIME FOOD PROBLEMS, 1917-1918 35
boys, each plant with the capacity of one hundred pounds of
fruit per day. Bleaching sheds were also constructed in
every community, and in all not less than fifty carloads of
perishables were saved.81
But valuable as it was, the labor furnished by young
men and women in gardens, orchards, and elsewhere, was
not enough. By August, 1917, it was conceivable that a
substantial loss of food might occur because of a lack of
laborers for the harvest. An aggravated complication in the
labor shortage was the demand for laborers to construct
cantonments and other government buildings at Deming.
By offering higher wages, contractors caused many farm
laborers to leave their places for opportunities at the army
camps. Charles Springer, in suggesting a remedy for this
condition, proposed that changes should be made in federal
laws and regulations to permit the importation of Mexican
contract laborers under bond to work on government con-
struction projects. Other voices were overheard advocating
that Japanese and Chinese in Mexico should be allowed
to come in for labor in the fields. If those solutions couldn't
be worked out then, it was further suggested, perhaps the
Department of Commerce and Labor could induce American
workmen from outside the agricultural districts to move in
to do the construction work, with the contractors paying
for their transportation.82 November, 1917, found Springer
renewing his appeals. He then advocated that one com-
mission be sent by the federal government to Asia, and
another one to South America "to select and secure a number
of laborers who could be used under proper regulations in
the United States for a limited time and during the continu-
ance of the war emergency."83 Although no widespread
measures were taken to spread United States labor procure-
ment over the world, it was reported that "hordes" of
Mexican farm laborers flocked into the United States in the
spring of 1918, and that they left for farm districts in Colo-
si. State county agent leader's report for November, 1917, p. 8 ; Ralph C. Ely,
Santa Fe, to Herbert Hoover, Washington, D. C., September 22, 1917, FA6HA1-3087.
82. Charles Springer, Santa Fe, to W. S. Gifford, Washington, D. C., August 17,
1917, (copy), Council of National Defense Papers.
83. Id. to George F. Porter, Washington, D. C., November 21, 1917, ibid.
36 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
rado, California, and New Mexico.84 As a part of a general
drive against members of the International Workers of the
World and other laboring class "radicals," J. 0. Miller, a
farm specialist at the State College, made a tour of observa-
tion through the Pecos valley and the eastern districts of
the state. He recommended that sheriffs and their aides
should begin a drive against vagabonds, idlers, and others
who were trying to dodge work. That would do something
to lessen the shortage of farm and ranch labor there.85
Naturally, the selective service system which called
many New Mexicans into the armed forces had its influence
upon the state's labor problems. Already in June, 1917,
Springer, in an appeal to Secretary of War Newton D. Baker,
asked that the draft regulations should exempt from mili-
tary service those men "whose services in agricultural and
industrial pursuits are of greater public necessity than their
services in the army."86 About six months later, General
E. K. Crowder, provost marshal in charge of the draft,
announced changes in the selective service system which
promised to go far toward answering the request for defer-
ment. It was explained that an occupational questionnaire
would be sent to every registrant who had not yet been
drafted, and only men who could be spared from industry
and agriculture would be taken. The final decision of defer-
ment, however, rested with the local "draft" or exemption
boards.87 President Wilson himself informed the people
that farmers were being given no blanket exemption from
the draft, though he hoped the new regulations would make
it possible for the farmers' supply of labor to be "much less
seriously drawn upon."88 Policies differed somewhat from
board to board. Frequently, the county extension service
agents were called upon to testify concerning a man's value
in his current occupation.89 Exemption Board No. 1 decided
84. Santa Fe New Mexican, May 17, 1918.
85. Ibid., June 28, 1918.
86. Charles Springer, Santa Fe, to Newton D. Baker, Washington, D. C., June 9,
1917, (telegram), Council of National Defense Papers.
87. Santa Fe New Mexican, November 12, 1917.
88. Ibid., January 31, 1918.
89. A. C. Cooley, Fourth Annual Report, p. 68.
WARTIME FOOD PROBLEMS, 1917-1918 37
to place in the deferred classification all young men who
were turning out farm products that would be valuable to
the nation in time of war, but with the proviso that if any
man didn't come forth with the largest quantity of crops
of which his labor and enterprise were capable his case
would be reconsidered.90 Notwithstanding the mitigations,
there was a general opinion in the spring of 1918 that the
draft would surely take many who would be needed to har-
vest the crops. Ely gloomily noted during April that most
local exemption boards were classifying young farmers
skilled in irrigation and dry land farming in "class one,
division 'A.' "91 Business and professional men began to
consider closing their establishments, and taking to the
fields with their employees to garner in the harvest.92 And
Secretary of State Antonio Lucero came forth with the
neighborly proposal that "Home Guards" should be formed
in every county to care for the farms of those who had
been called into the army. County Councils of Defense, he
believed, could forward such work.93 Late in the summer,
some "agricultural furloughs" were granted to men in the
military service who were still reasonably close to their
homes, and who were needed there in order that the crops
might be harvested.94 However, little was done to redis-
tribute the civilian labor supply.95 Had not the war ended
in the fall of 1918, there would undoubtedly have been an
extremely critical manpower shortage the following spring.
VI. FOOD ADMINISTRATION : CLIMAX AND FINALE
In the last analysis the success or failure of price regula-
tion, production, and many other tasks of wartime living
depended upon the good sense and cooperative spirit of the
people. Perhaps elaborate organizations like the Council of
Defense and the state food administration were necessary to
90. Santa F6 New Mexican, February 13, 1918.
91. Ralph C. Ely, Albuquerque, to [United States] Food Administration, Wash-
ington, D. C., April 11, 1918, FA6HA2-3193.
92. Santa Fe New Mexican, March 8, 1918.
93. Ibid., July 10, 1918.
94. A. C. Cooley, Fourth Annual Report, p. 68.
96. Questionnaire reports, March 23, June 20, 1918.
38 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
coordinate the efforts of patriotic volunteers — at times they
succeeded very well in doing just that. Yet it cannot be
denied that morale shattering inconsistencies, much wasted
effort, and hurtful quarrels were equally characteristic of
them. This was particularly true of the state food admin-
istration. Its history until the autumn of 1918 was one of
constantly growing complexity. With an endlessly shifting
personnel, it had one of the most extensive organizations of
any state food administration in the country. This was built
around four central officials : the food administrator, assist-
ant administrator (an office created on May 21, 1918) , execu-
tive secretary, and field secretary. Ely chose H. G. Bush of
the Deming Lumber Company to act as his assistant admin-
istrator, and after Ely's resignation in September, 1918,
Bush succeeded him as acting administrator for a few weeks.
The executive secretary, who was in fact the manager of
the office and a more important figure than the assistant
administrator, was a state senator, Melvin T. Dunlavy. On
May 1, 1918, allegedly because of "office politics," he re-
signed, and returned to private law practice in Santa Fe.
Later he served the administration as county administrator,
and became secretary to Senator A. A. Jones. He was suc-
ceeded as executive secretary by M. R. Johnston, a public
accountant, who served as acting food administrator during
the last weeks of the war.1 Ely's first field secretary, J. H.
Toulouse, before he became associated with the food admin-
istration had been in the employ of the State College as
assistant organizer of Boys and Girls clubs. For a time
his relations with Ely were most satisfactory, but one of
the most disgraceful quarrels of the administration, and
one that resulted in Ely's resignation as well, caused him
to leave the organization on July 15, 1918. His field secre-
tary position then was filled by C. H. Lowber, who before
that had acted as the administration's auditor.2
1. Santa Fe New Mexican, April 29, 1918 ; Albuquerque Morning Journal, Octo-
ber 3, 1918 ; "Tabulation of Data Received in Questionnaires From State Administra-
tors," FA6H-C71 ; "Personnel of the New Mexico Food Administration — Past and
Present," FA6HC1-3609.
2. "Statement Showing Names and Rates Paid in the Office of the State Food
Administrator at Albuquerque, New Mexico," FA6HA3-3343.
WARTIME FOOD PROBLEMS, 1917-1918 39
Outside of the central executive officers, the most im-
portant figures were the individual heads. At first they
were few in number, but new ones constantly were added as
the food administrator became involved in ever more varied
activities. By the spring- of 1918 there were no less than
thirteen divisions, grouped into two bureaus: one "com-
mercial," the other for "conservation." The divisions with
their heads were :3
Grocery division Arthur Pruitt of Roswell
Bakery Charles Jaeger of Albuquerque
Beans and Canned Goods, A. C. Ilfeld of Las Vegas
Law M. J. Helmick of Santa Fe
Retail Stores C. 0. Cushman of Albuquerque
Fruits L. Bradford Prince of Santa Fe
Livestock B. F. Pankey of Santa Fe
Meat A. B. Betz of Albuquerque
Utilization of Waste John D. Clark of the
University of New Mexico
Confectionery L. M. Fee of Albuquerque
Hotels and Restaurants John O. Pritchard, Clovis
Perishable Groceries, Roy A. Stamm, Albuquerque
Transportation N. E. Johnson of Albuquerque
Flour and Milling R. E. Putney of Albuquerque
Another important office was that of "director of edu-
cation" or "publicity agent," which E. Dana Johnson, editor
of the Santa Fe New Mexican, continued to hold until the
end of the administration. His deep involvement in New
Mexican factional politics continually tinged the activities
of the state food administration with political bias. For
example, at one time Charles Springer of the Council of
Defense barred one of Johnson's New Mexican reporters
from his office on the ground that the New Mexican had
accused the Council of Defense of being a political body.
Then, gleefully aware that his critical shafts had found
their mark, Johnson reported that Springer threatened the
New Mexican with prosecution under the espionage act for
3. Santa Fe New Mexican, April 4, 1918.
40 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
criticizing the Council.4 A much less controversial member
of Ely's staff was George Roslington, vice president and
general manager of the Occidental Life Insurance Company.
As "financial adviser" his title was somewhat misleading,
for actually he did not concern himself with the food admin-
istration's fiscal matters. In an informal manner he sought
to advise numerous farmers who applied to the administra-
tion concerning ways and means of financing enlarged
production and new farm equipment.5
Many of the division heads were only titular members
of the administration. Few, if any, traces of activity can be
found for some of these divisions, and Ely in his reports was
frank to admit that they were not uniformly satisfactory.
All of the division heads were civic volunteers who received
no pay for their work. The praiseworthy diligence of some
of them is for that reason a still better proof of their loyalty
and civic pride. In the grocery division, perhaps the most
active of all the divisions, A. J. Maloy was the able salaried
assistant of Arthur Pruitt. In fact, in Ely's words, Maloy
came to act as "dean" of the "commercial" bureau. At the
head of the "conservation" bureau, David Ross Boyd, presi-
dent of the University of New Mexico, occupied a similar
office without compensation.6 One of the most notable
changes among divisional leaders was the replacement of
B. F. Pankey with H. L. Kerr, state senator of the Grant-
Sierra-Socorro district, as head of the livestock division.
After stricter attempts were made to enforce the administra-
tion's regulations, an enforcement division was added with
Judge R. P. Barnes as its leader; about the same time E. N.
Boule of Gross-Kelly Company became head of an investiga-
tion division.7 One of the divisions caused Ely not a little
embarrassment. His first nomination for head of the bakery
unit was that of G. A. Pappe of Albuquerque. Owing to
unusual circumstances, Pappe, a German immigrant with
property in Germany, had never received his final natural-
4. Ibid., August 13, 1918.
5. Ralph C. Ely, Albuquerque, to John W. Hallowell, Washington, D. C., March
18. 1918, FA6HA1-3087.
6. Ibid.
7. Santa Fe New Mexican, June 14, July 1, 1918.
WARTIME FOOD PROBLEMS, 1917-1918 41
ization papers. At the outbreak of the European war in
1914 he had registered as a German reservist to prevent his
holdings abroad from being confiscated. But as soon as it
became known that an "enemy alien" had been made the
head of a division in the state food administration there was
loud excitement and much criticism. Amid the hysteria it
was quite ineffectual for Ely to explain that Pappe' s wife
was a member of the Red Cross and that Pappe himself had
bought many Liberty bonds. The Bernalillo county Council
of Defense and city manager Redington demanded that
Pappe be dismissed from his food administration post. At
first, Ely stood his ground, but finally he gave way before
the attack, and accepted the resignation, which, under the
circumstances, Pappe was quite willing to offer.8
There was a steadily rising expense curve for the ad-
ministration until the climax was reached shortly before
Ely's resignation. In mid-summer, 1918, there were thirty-
six paid workers receiving a monthly payroll of $1201.41.
By September, the number of salaried employees had
dropped to twenty-six. Working with the paid employees,
however, was an ever-changing but constantly growing staff
of volunteers; they numbered almost one hundred seventy-
five near the end of the administration.9 In truth, Ely did
not wish to appoint many of them to positions of city and
county administrators. He held back until the summer of
1918, when the federal food administration practically forced
him to make the appointments. At that time New Mexico
was one of the few states which did not have county admin-
istrators. Ely had much preferred to develop "the natural
leaders in the trades" through whom he could reach "the
lesser merchants." As a supplement he was willing to
depend upon "a scheme of reporters or inspectors for our
widely separated communities."10 Perhaps his dislike for
the state Council of Defense reinforced his prejudice against
8. Ibid., March 23, 1918; Ralph C. Ely, Albuquerque, to John W. Hallowell,
Washington, D. C., March 23, 1918, FA6HA2-3193.
9. "New Mexico Historical Summary of the Food Administration," FA6HC1-
3609. Statement Showing Names and Rates Paid . . ., FA6HA3-3343.
10. Ralph C. Ely, Albuquerque, to K. S. Clow, Washington, D. C., May 18, 1918,
FA6HA2-3194.
42 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
county organizations. At least he criticized the council's
selection of county committees as hasty and arbitrary.11 At
another time he admitted that he was opposed to county
administrators because they lent themselves with "such
frightful ease" to political manipulation. As an alternative
he suggested that the head of every division whose work
touched upon one or more counties should appoint his own
representatives in those counties.12 That might have meant
Ely's abnegation of political ambitions, but again it could
have been a device for securing a stronger political follow-
ing among the members of his organization. In the end,
he decided to appoint county administrators; twenty-five
were qualified and began to serve in July. Two counties,
because of local conditions, were divided into two districts
with an administrator for each.13 Some of the adminis-
trators gave a substantial amount of time to the work, but
because of internal turmoil it is doubtful whether the morale
or effectiveness of the food administration was any higher
in the fall of 1918 than it had been before. On the contrary,
there is reason to believe that the organization was far more
perfunctory then. Had not the war ended in November, a
general reorganization would have been imperative.
Largely responsible for the declining importance of
the state food administration was an inglorious demonstra-
tion of ineptitude and petty jealousies that led to Ely's
resignation. In part, Ely himself must be charged with
failure. For although of good appearance and plausible to
a degree that he could make others believe in him, his
ambitions and enthusiasms were apt to run away with his
judgment. Frequently his generous loyalty to those who had
won his confidence prevented him from taking steps which
were manifestly in the interest of the public he was pledged
to serve. To cite only a few instances: New Mexico was
one of the last states in the union to have publication of
fair price lists ; it was among the most tardy in devising a
11. Id. to United States Food Administration, Washington, D. C., February 18,
1918, FA6HA2-3193.
12. Ibid.; id. to K. S. Clow, Washington, D. C., May 20, 1918, ibid.
13. Questionnaire reports, August 1, September 1, 1918.
WARTIME FOOD PROBLEMS, 1917-1918 43
method to determine fair margins of profit for wholesalers
and retailers ; it was quite remiss in checking upon the prac-
tices of licensees. To be sure the federal food administra-
tion made very little effort to remedy defects in Ely's organ-
ization. Instead of applying pressure upon Ely to enforce
what were understood to be its elementary policies, its
administrators in Washington sent out voluminous reports,
wrote letters (some querulous and some vague) about minor
matters of administration, and in general spent their time
in a snarl of details. Until the summer of 1918, only one
competent executive was sent to New Mexico to check upon
the course of the state food administration. Then, amid a
secret service investigation and the like, the Washington
administrators decided that drastic action was necessary.
During his last months in office, Ely began to show the
strain of his consistently long hours of work in the admin-
istration. Perhaps this was because he devoted his time to
small matters that might better have been handled by sub-
ordinates, but, if so, it was a weakness that sprang from
generous impulses. Even granting that he did not have a
sound knowledge of many aspects of economics and business
practice, he was nonetheless eager to compensate for this
with the energy and fervor of his efforts. He had the politi-
cian's sixth-sense of good fellowship. His office was always
open to visitors, and he personally answered complaints or
requests from the humblest household.14 But as administra-
tive problems multiplied, he became more irritable and short-
tempered. Late in July, 1918, he wrote to one executive in
Washington :15 "I am getting very tired physically as well as
mentally ... I am giving this work all my time and every
bit of energy that is in me. It probably represents more of
a sacrifice than I can afford, and that, of course, worries
me . . ." It was common gossip that Ely's personal finances
were none too stable. Apparently he did not have an inde-
pendent income, and after the early autumn of 1917 devoted
14. See, numerous letters among Ely's correspondence in the food administration
papers.
15. Ralph C. Ely, Albuquerque, to George H. Warrington, Washington, D. C.,
July 29, 1918, FA6HA3-3343.
44 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
his full time to the administration without compensation.
Living extravagantly, a goodly number of his accounts were
unpaid. Rumors connected him with a shadowy sulphur
speculation, and trips into the mountains with prospective
investors; but since little was known for certain, sinister
doubts were raised at each retelling of half-believed sus-
picions.16
Most serious of the complications involving Ely was a
violent dispute with his field secretary, J. H. Toulouse. At
the beginning of the administration, Toulouse had come into
the organization as Ely's political and personal friend. Ely
was most liberal in his praise, and as late as May, 1918, he
wrote a warm letter to Washington extolling Toulouse's
patriotism for accepting the low salary to serve in the food
crusade.17 In January, however, the Las Vegas Optic
(hostile to the food administration and friendly to the state
Council of Defense) hinted mysteriously that Toulouse was
planning to leave the food administration.18 Toulouse denied
it, but he later admitted that in February he offered his
services to the State Council of Defense and the State Col-
lege.19 Ely found this out, and afterward Toulouse made
no extensive field trips. Instead, he developed the idea of a
large mother-daughter congress in Albuquerque, and in June
the project was carried out with great success.20 In report-
ing to Washington at its conclusion, Ely admitted that
Toulouse had been responsible for it, and praised his work.21
Nevertheless, Toulouse waited only a few days to tell the
Washington administrators that he was going to resign
from the state food administration; to leave little doubt
about his motives he then asked for a position as field man
with the federal administration. He might, he added, be
16. J. H. Toulouse, Santa Fe, to John W. Hallowell, Washington, D. C., August
6, 1918, ibid.
17. Ralph C. Ely, Albuquerque, to [Frederick M.] Stone, Washington, D. C.,
May 17, 1918, FA6HA2-3193.
18. Santa Fe New Mexican, January 26, 1918.
19. J. H. Toulouse, Albuquerque, to E. F. Cullen, Washington. D. C., June 20,
1918, FA6HA3-3343.
20. (Id.,) to John W. Hallowell, Washington, D. C., September 17, 1918,
FA6HA3-3346.
21. Ralph C. Ely, Albuquerque, to id., July 2, 1918, (copy), ibid.
WARTIME FOOD PROBLEMS, 1917-1918 45
successful if they would allow him to stage a great national
mother-daughter congress in Chicago.22 For the moment
John W. Hallowell of the states' administration division and
other executives were not receptive to his suggestions, but
certainly they were aware that there must be trouble within
the New Mexico state organization, especially when Toulouse
wrote on July 21 that he had accepted a position as field
superintendent for the state Council of Defense.23 Then, on
August 3, Hallowell was thrown into consternation by a wire
from Toulouse which read:24 "I expect to prefer charges
against Ely. Embezzlement government funds. Will await
your advice." Hallo well's advice was to defer the charges,
and to send him a complete statement of them. When
Toulouse did so, it must have been clear to the executive
that they were not conclusive. There was one accusation
that Ely had charged certain personal expenditures to his
government expense account. (That was similar to one of
the charges that had been made against him at the time
he was removed from his receivership of the New Mexico
Central railroad.) But outside of several alleged trips to
Jemez country sulphur mines no definite instances were cited
of widespread violations.25 Ely's trips outside the state had
been unmistakably on food administration business, although
his estimate in the 1918-1919 budget of $13,000 for travel-
ling expenses for the entire food administration personnel
was unusually high in relation to the salary budget of
$22,000.26 There was a trifling matter of $57.00 that Ely
was accused of misspending after the mother-daughter con-
gress,27 and finally, without submitting any evidence,
Toulouse implied that Ely might have received a $150 "gift"
from one of his division heads and a bribe to secure the
reinstatement of one licensee whose business had been sus-
22. J. H. Toulouse, Albuquerque, to id., July 5, 1918, FA6HA3-3343.
23. Id. to id., July 21, 1918, FA6HA3-3346.
24. Id. to id., August 3, 1918, (telegram), FA6HA3-3343.
25. Id. to id., August 6, 1918, ibid.; John W. Hallowell, Washington, D. C., to
J. H. Toulouse, Albuquerque, August 3, 1918, (telegram copy), ibid.
26. Ralph C. Ely, Albuquerque, to John W. Hallowell, Washington, D. C., May
9, 1918, (telegram), FA6HA1-3087.
27. J. H. Toulouse, Albuquerque, to id., August 6, 1918, FA6HA3-3343.
46 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
pended for unfair practices.28 Ely in turn attacked Toulouse
in indignant letters.29
Jarred by the exchange of violent recriminations, the
states administration division in Washington handed over
to the secret service the entire file of complaints against Ely.
Holland K. Goddard, a secret service agent, was then sent to
Albuquerque with instructions to investigate the charges.
If the secret service report corroborated them, it was under-
stood that Ely would be asked to resign when he came to
Washington for a conference the first week in September.30
Goddard's investigation was quite superficial; most of the
testimony was gathered in conversations with Ely's sworn
enemies.31 Even though he hinted darkly of certain financial
irregularities in the administration of the grocers' fund from
which A. J. Maloy was paid, Ely was able to give a satisfac-
tory accounting of it when requested to do so by the federal
food administration.32 No other evidence was produced that
was strong enough for any criminal prosecution to be based
upon. Still, Goddard's conclusion that "the Food Adminis-
tration in New Mexico is a disgrace to the government"
probably influenced Herbert Hoover and his associates in
Washington.33 Ely was approached about his trouble with
Toulouse when he went to Washington,34 and undoubtedly
pressure was applied to secure his resignation. As soon as
he returned to Albuquerque, he drafted a telegram that
read:35 "I am not within draft age but am poor and feel
compelled to relinquish this work in order to provide for
[my] family. Received attractive offer from California yes-
28. Ibid.
29. Ralph C. Ely, Albuquerque, to [United States] Food Administration, States
Administration Division, Washington, D. C., September 18, 1918, ibid.
30. [James] Miles, Washington, D. C., to [W. H.] Moran, Washington, D. C.,
August 16, 1918, ibid.
31. Goddard report, August 28, 1918, passim, ibid.
32. Ibid., p. 21 ; "Account of Donations To Food Administration by the Retail
and Wholesale Grocers,'" FA6HA3-3346 ; Ralph C. Ely, Albuquerque, to [United
States] Food Administration, States Administration Division, Washington, D. C.,
September 17, 1918, ibid.
33. Goddard report, p. 26.
34. Ralph C. Ely, Albuquerque, to [United States] Food Administration, States
Administration Division, September 13, 1918, FA6HA3-3343.
35. Id. to Herbert Hoover, Washington. D. C., September 20, 1918, (telegram),
ibid.
WARTIME FOOD PROBLEMS, 1917-1918 47
terday which I desire [to] accept if I can be honorably
released . . ." Hoover wrote a curt reply, but, on second
thought he redrafted it to say:36 "... in accepting your
resignation I wish to express my appreciation of your de-
voted service. I am in hopes your new position will develop
to your entire satisfaction . . ." So ended a stormy chapter
in New Mexico's wartime economic history.
One aspect of Ely's resignation concerned his connec-
tion with state politics. When a copy of Hoover's "accep-
tance" telegram to Ely came to J. W. Hallowell's desk, the
states' administration executive endorsed it with a note
that made it clear he had been in touch with Senator A. A.
Jones, and that the senator had been quite willing that the
change should take place.37 That was quite a different
attitude than Jones had taken a year before. During the
interval Ely steadfastly had maintained that he had done
his utmost to keep politics out of the state food administra-
tion. Toulouse, on the other hand, testified that Ely had
instructed him, as field secretary, to keep his eyes on politics,
and to furnish the names of those who spoke well of the
food administrator's efforts.38 R. E. Putney, who resigned
from the state Council of Defense soon after it began opera-
tions, was one of Ely's division heads. In September, 1918,
Putney unanimously was chosen chairman of the Democratic
organization in Bernalillo county,39 and at the 1918 Demo-
cratic state convention he was an unsuccessful candidate
for the gubernatorial nomination.40 But if Ely, as his foes
claimed, attempted to build a Democratic machine in the
food administration, he failed miserably through his own
lack of political skill. His factional opponents would have
made him a target of unmerciful ridicule in the 1918 elec-
tions. Ely could hardly expect Senator Jones to tolerate
96. Herbert Hoover, Washington, D. C., to Ralph C. Ely, Albuquerque, Septem-
ber 21, 1918, (copy), ibid.; Draft of telegram, id. to id., September 21, 1918, ibid.
37. See, Hallowell's endorsement on telegram copy of Herbert Hoover to Ely,
September 21, 1918, ibid.
38. [J. H. Toulouse], Albuquerque, to John W. Hallowell, Washington, D. C.,
September 17, 1918, FA6HA3-3346.
39. Santa Fe New Mexican, May 17, 1917; Albuquerque Morning Journal, Sep-
tember 3, 1918.
40. Ibid., September 30, 1918.
48 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
failure to a much further degree than any other political
leader.41 However, there was a vastly different version
which reported that Ely was preparing to throw over the
Democrats in the summer of 1918. When Will Hays, Re-
publican national chairman, visited New Mexico in April,
1918, he had spoken rather critically of some "Old Guard"
practices. He had shaken hands warmly with Ely, and
added, "There are no yesterdays in Republican politics."42
By summer it had become apparent to all who watched the
direction of national political straws in the wind that the
Democratic hold was slipping. Many were scurrying for
protection behind the Republican machine. It was then that
large numbers of county administrators were appointed, and
most of them were Republicans. Under those circumstances
Ely's exit could have been tantamount to an execution of an
inept political recusant.
Scarcely had Ely left New Mexico when the federal
food administration began the task of selecting his successor.
Not wishing to repeat its earlier mistakes, it dispatched a
reliable executive, Philip B. Stewart, to the scene with
instructions to make a careful investigation and to report
upon prospective candidates. Upon arriving Stewart in-
formed the Washington office that H. G. Bush, who had
taken over as acting head when Ely resigned, was doing
well. In his opinion Bush might make a good permanent
head of administration, except for the fact that he was
"bound to shoot all the time and not always at the mark."43
With memories of Ely still fresh, that was enough to dis-
qualify Bush, and besides he was anxious to get into the
armed forces. On September 29, he submitted his resigna-
tion, and a short while later left to join the quartermaster's
corps.44 Many other names, all of them known as stable
41. Ibid., October 26, 1918.
42. Santa Fe New Mexican, April 23, 1918.
43. Memorandum [in George H. Warrington's handwriting], October 9, [1918],
FA6HA3-3346; [Philip S.] Stewart, Santa Fe, to [John H.] Hallowell, Washington,
D. C., October 1-2, 1918, (telegram), ibid.; id. to id. October 4, 1918, ibid.
44. United States Food Administration, States Administration Division, Wash-
ington, D. C., to M. R. Johnston, Albuquerque, November 6, 1918, (copy), FA6HA10-
3440; H. G. Bush, Albuquerque, to J[ohn] W. Hallowell, Washington, D. C., Sep-
tember 29, 1918, (telegram), FA6HA3-3343.
WARTIME FOOD PROBLEMS, 1917-1918 49
business men, were suggested by Stewart, but of these two
in particular stood out for serious consideration. One was
that of Max Nordhaus — past president of the Albuquerque
Chamber of Commerce, head of the New Mexico Liberty loan
committee, and "active head" of Charles Ilfeld and Com-
pany. Stewart favored him as the best choice, but Nordhaus
was a Republican and Senator Jones withheld his consent.
The other prominent figure was Arthur Seligman, vice-
president of the First National Bank of Santa Fe with many
other business connections, and chairman of the Democratic
state committee. Needless to say, Senator Jones highly
approved of him. But, for that matter, Stewart pointed out
that Seligman's name met approval wherever it was men-
tioned. His political activities had been "clean" and free
from "suspicions of political enmity." For the time being
he could take a non-committal attitude ; after the November
elections he would resign his political chairmanship, and
join the food administration. Even Springer apparently
was willing to have him under these conditions.45 On Octo-
ber 9, however, word came that Senator Jones had "tele-
grams from several parties" urging that no selection be
made until after the elections.46 The appointment, there-
fore, was never made, because the armistice followed hard
upon the voting. Instead, M. R. Johnston continued as
acting administrator until the state food administration was
liquidated the following February. Wisely enough his regu-
lar salary was increased to match his added responsibilities.47
In the bitter autumn election campaign of 1918, both
the state Council of Defense and the state food administra-
tion figured in charges and counter-charges. In a speech
at the Democratic state convention, Neill B. Field of Albu-
querque made the assertion that the Council of Defense was
"packed" with Republicans, and that it had spent $325,000
45. [John W.] Hallowell, Washington, D. C., to [Philip B.] Stewart, Albu-
querque, October 5, 1918, (telegram copy), ibid.; [Philip B.] Stewart, Albuquerque, to
[John W.] Hallowell, September 30, October 1, 4, 1918, (telegrams) ; Edward A.
Trefz, Albuquerque, to J[ohn] W. Hallowell, Washington, D. C., October 4, 1918, ibid.
46. [George H.] Warrington, Washington, D. C., to Philip B. Stewart, Santa Fe,
October 9, 1918, (telegram copy), ibid.
47. [United States] Food Administration, States Administration Division, Wash-
ington, D. C., to M. R. Johnston, Albuquerque, November 15, 1918, (copy), ibid.
50 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
of the taxpayers' money without making a satisfactory
accounting.48 He was answered by H. 0. Bursum at the
Republican state convention.49 County conventions of the
parties then took up the issue ; resolutions were passed either
praising or condemning the Council, and indignant speeches
accompanied them.50 Among the newspapers, however, the
campaign made strange allies. About the time the first
campaign preliminaries were getting started, M. L. Fox,
Ely's inveterate enemy, returned to the editorship of the
Albuquerque Journal which he had left the previous spring.
Soon he was lampooning Senator Jones' leadership of the
Democrats ; one of the senator's first mistakes, he contended,
had been the appointment of Ely to the food administration.51
But Ely was gone, and the food administration was not
quite so much in the vortex of political turmoil as it other-
wise surely would have been. Even Ely's strongest ally,
the Santa Fe New Mexican, coyly came out in support of the
Republican candidates, and almost unbelievably for those
who had witnessed the vituperation its editor, Johnson, had
poured upon the "Old Guard", it praised Charles Springer's
uncompensated devotion to the cause of national defense.52
To be sure, the New Mexican stressed national issues, and
tried to add the appearance of consistency by saying that
Republican state chairman George R. Craig was a vigorous
influence for "progressivism" who would thwart the "Old
Guard" machine. It was an ineffective dodge. Everyone
knew that the "Old Guard" still ruled, and that Governor
Lindsey had been cast aside for his tendencies toward inde-
pendent action.53 From gubernatorial candidate 0. A.
Larrazolo downward, the Republican slate featured party
regularity. Nor was the State College passed by in the
conflict. Fox warned in his Albuquerque Journal that a
Democratic victory would mean the "return of State College
to politics". Democratic state chairman, Arthur Seligman,
48. Albuquerque Morning Journal, October 3, 1918.
49. Ibid., October 24, 1918.
50. Ibid.; Santa Fe New Mexican, October 24, 1918.
51. Albuquerque Morning Journal, September 26, October 1, 1918.
52. Santa Fe New Mexican, October 24, 1918.
53. Ibid., July 1, August 23, October 17, 1918.
WARTIME FOOD PROBLEMS, 1917-1918 51
he alleged, already had attacked the college because, when
it was necessary to boost the production of foodstuffs, Presi-
dent Crile had asked the Council of Defense for money to
carry on the work.54
After the returns had registered a Republican victory,
Seligman demanded a complete list of the state food admin-
istration personnel from acting administrator Johnston.
With unmistakable emphasis, Seligman let it be known that
he didn't want more Democrats than Republicans in the
organization, but that he would be glad to have "an even
break". He also mentioned "reports" that the food adminis-
tration had been more friendly to Republicans than to
Democrats in the campaign that had just ended. In reply,
Johnston admitted that he was a Republican, but affirmed
that he had "scratched" his ballot. Most of the divisional
heads were Democrats. As for the county administrators,
Johnston professed that he knew the politics of only two
of them. Yet he refused to remove county administrators
who specifically were named as partisan by the Democrats,
although one food administration inspector who had been
found electioneering was dismissed from his place.55 Either
Johnston's statement was convincing to William B. Walton,
who had been the Democratic candidate just defeated by
Albert B. Fall for the United States senate, or else Walton
was a "good loser", for he wrote to Johnston : "Like your-
self I am convinced that the reports were Without foundation
in fact, and I am sincerely glad to know this."56
By the time that Johnston made his peace with the
Democratic leaders, the war had ended and the f pod admin-
istration was entering its last phase. Only a month before
the armistice, the New Mexican had quoted Herbert Hoover
as saying there was no prospect of peace before the summer
of 1919 ; meanwhile allied civilians, the armies, and certain
neutral nations would require 5,730,000 more tons of food
54. Albuquerque Morning Journal, October 26, 1918.
55. M. R. Johnston, Albuquerque, to [George H.] Warrington, Washington, D. C.,
December 13, 23, 1918, FA6HA3-3343 ; id. to Arthur Seligman, Santa Fe, December
23, 1918, (copy), ibid.
56. W. B. Walton, Washington, D. C., to M. R. Johnston, Albuquerque, December
30, 1918, (copy), ibid.
52 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
than had been available in 1918.57 There was at least a
possibility, some New Mexican leaders thought, that the food
administration would continue to operate at least until the
spring of 1919.58 That it would be otherwise was clear after
November 13, for Hoover then announced he was about
ready to leave the food administration on a mission to keep
Europe from post-war starvation. In a conference with
senate leaders he agreed that extension of the food control
law and the food administration beyond the duration of the
war was unnecessary.59 Thereafter, demobilization pro-
ceeded apace; by January 1 only eight paid workers were
left in the New Mexico state administration, and but five
volunteers were assisting them.60 That state office closed on
February 15; the furniture was sold, and the lease given
up.61 Johnston would have liked to prolong some of the
services. In a letter to J. W. Hallowell, he proposed:62 "I
personally would like very much to continue in this work
. . . with my stenographer and one clerk ... I could do
everything necessary and also a great deal of educational
work amongst the foreign population of this state . . ."
HallowelFs answer was in the negative.63
The end of the food administration did not imply that
New Mexico's food problems were solved by the armistice,
nor was it true that efforts to meet those problems were
discontinued. After two years of the severest drought in
its history, between fifty and seventy-five percent of New
Mexico's range cattle had been sent to other pastures or to
the slaughtering pens. Even in 1918 many of the crops in
dry-farming regions had been failures. From early fall the
price of corn and other grains had been dropping. Debt-
ridden farmers were faced with the same old problem : high
prices for what they bought, not so high prices for what
57. Santa Fe New Mexican, October 11, 1918.
58. Ibid., November 13, 1918.
59. Ibid., November 14, 1918.
60. Questionnaire report, December 27, 1918.
61. M. R. Johnston, Albuquerque, to [John W.] Hallowell (et al.) , Washington,
D. C., February 10, 1919, FA6HA14-3452.
62. Id. to id., January 17, 1919, ibid.
63. [John W.] Hallowell, Washington, D. C., to M. R. Johnston, Albuquerque,
January 24, 1919, (telegram copy), ibid.
WARTIME FOOD PROBLEMS, 1917-1918 53
they sold. Menacingly as ever, the middleman seemed to
stand like a nemesis between producer and consumer.64 For
the period of reconstruction that was to accompany the
return of peace, the Council of Defense and extension service
remained in active operation. Of the two the extension
service proved to be more active in long-range planning,
although the Council of Defense, which by September, 1918,
had expended $125,000 on agricultural development, carried
on some work until May, 1920.63 There could be no doubt
that in spite of the war, New Mexico agriculture had made
great strides toward improved methods: great drainage
projects were well started in Dona Ana and Bernalillo
counties; more irrigation systems were in operation; com-
mercial fertilizers were being more largely used; legumes
were being plowed under ; crop rotations were being planned ;
controls were being developed for soil blowing in dry farm
regions; pinto beans were being standardized and raised
from hand-selected seed. These were only a few of the
many advances that the extension service fostered.66 Other
groups were beginning to take a hand with the remaining
problems. One of governor-elect 0. A. Larrazolo's first
acts was to send an invitation to farmers and stockmen
of stricken districts for a meeting where they might formu-
late recommendations for a recovery plan.67 More belligerent
were farmers' associations, typical of which was the New
Mexican Bean Growers Association. Based upon the plan
of organization followed by the California fruit growers,
it frankly intended that measures should be taken "to insure
the growers that middlemen will not eat up the profits and
that they [the farmers] are not held up on necessaries for
production."68 It was the beginning of a new era, in some
respects a disappointing era that would suffer from faulty
64. A. C. Cooley, Fourth Annual Report, p. 1 ; Santa Fe New Mexican, November
11, 1918.
65. Ibid., October 11, 1917, September 18, 1918; Final Report New Mexico
Council of Defense, p. 7.
66. A. C. Cooley, Fourth Annual Report, pp. 33-34.
67. Santa Fe New Mexican, November 11, 1918.
68. Ibid., February 12, June 7, 1918 ; A. C. Cooley, Third Annual Report, p. 28 ;
id., Fourth Annual Report, pp. 59-60 ; Albuquerque Morning Journal, October 12,
November 3, 1918.
54 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
economic adjustments. But 1919 was to inaugurate it
auspiciously with plentiful rains and abundant crops. No
one could say it was not a deserved contrast for a people
that had had the stamina to replant its fields twice, three
times, and even more in parched ground, and under a blister-
ing sun. Such a people had needed nothing to remind them
of the duty of patriots. Even for those who recognized, as
a warning for a future wartime generation, that selfishness,
indifference, and corruption occasionally cropped out in the
food effort, there were just as evident demonstrations of
optimism, courage, and faith — all adequate guarantees of
future vitality.
NEW MEXICO AND THE SECTIONAL CONTROVERSY,
1846-1861
By LOOMIS MORTON GANAWAY
CHAPTER VI
THE SECESSION MOVEMENT IN SOUTHERN
NEW MEXICO
WHEN the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was negotiated
in 1848, the international boundary between the United
States and Mexico was partially determined by a map that
was later found to be inaccurate. The error, when detected,
created a boundary dispute between the two governments
involving an area of five or six thousand square miles.1 The
region in question extended from the Mexican frontier
town of El Paso on the Rio Grande northward along the
west band of the river for approximately fifty miles and
westward to the headwaters of the Gila River. Although
it was uninhabited except by roving bands of lawless,
nomadic Apache Indians, it was a fertile region which,
under peaceful conditions, would invite settlement to an ex-
tensive degree.
Some fifty miles above El Paso del Norte and on the
east side of the river, in the spring of 1851, was the small
town of Dona Ana with five or six hundred inhabitants, and
standing fifty or sixty feet above the bottom lands. It had
been settled but a few years and was selected on account of
the broad and rich valley near, and the facilities that existed
for irrigating it. Six or eight miles below Dona Ana, on the
opposite side of the river,2 was the town of Mesilla, contain-
ing between six and seven hundred inhabitants, a place which
owed its origin to circumstances growing out of the late war
with Mexico. "Mesitta is the diminutive of the Spanish
1. Paul Neff Garber, The Gadsden Purchase (Philadelphia, 1923), 16-17.
2. At this time, the Rio Grande was using a channel which ran much nearer
the foothills on the east. Some thirty years later, the river picked a new channel
west of Mesilla and near the foothills along the west side of the valley, where it is
today. Our description is from Bartlett. See next note.
55
56 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
word mesa (table) and is applied to a lesser plateau in the
valley of the Rio Grande, beneath that of the great mesa or
table-land, which extends for several hundred miles in all
directions from the Rio Grande. . . . Immediately preced-
ing and after the war with Mexico, the Mexican population
occupying the eastern bank of the Rio Grande in Texas and
New Mexico were greatly annoyed by the encroachments of
the Americans, and by their determined efforts to despoil
them of their landed property." At this time an unestimated
number of Texans arrived in that locality with "head rights,"
grants that were issued by the State of Texas to men who
had served in her wars. These grants were usually for 640
acres of land, not specific as to the location. According to
a contemporary writer, the Texans were not much con-
cerned about the property rights of the Mexican inhabitants
and in some instances evicted them from their homes and
assumed ownership of other property that had been held by
the Mexicans for generations.3
A partial compensation for the dispossessed Mexicans
developed with the promise by the United States of pro-
tection from the Indians along the international frontier.
According to the ninth article of the Treaty of Guadalupe
Hidalgo, the United States bound itself to restrain the in-
cursions of the Indians into Mexican territory with the same
diligence that would be exercised in their control within
American territory.4 With this assurance of protection, the
Mexicans moved their families across the Rio Grande into
the Mesilla Valley.5 The Texans, however, followed shortly,
and asserted American sovereignty in this region as firmly
as they had declared it on the eastern side of the Rio Grande.
Conflicts again ensued, and this was the situation in 1851,
when the entire disputed region was awarded to Mexico
3. John Russell Bartlett, Personal Narrative of Explorations and Incidents in
Texas, New Mexico, California, Sonora, and Chihuahua, Connected with the United
States and Mexican Boundary Commission, during the Years 1850, '51, '52 and
'53 (New York, 2 vols., 1854), I, 211-215.
4. Act of March 10, 1848, U. S. Statutes at Large, IX, 930-932.
5. Samuel Woodworth Cozzens, Marvellous Country; or Three Years in Arizona
and New Mexico, the Apaches' home, etc. (New York, 1874), 46-49.
SECESSION IN SOUTHERN NEW MEXICO 57
by John Russell Bartlett, the boundary commissioner repre-
senting the United States.6
With the award to Mexico, the State of Chihuahua ex-
tended its authority over the Mesilla Valley with a demand
that the Americans relinquish their claims immediately.
The Texans not only refused to obey this order but also
appealed for protection of their rights to James S. Calhoun,
the territorial governor of New Mexico.7 In order that this
plea from the Americans in the Mesilla reach the governor
at Santa Fe, a messenger was compelled to travel a distance
of over two hundred miles, ninety of which was across the
Jornada del Muerto, the most desolate region in the terri-
tory. Governor Calhoun received their entreaty with in-
difference, principally because he was so much involved in
local problems that he had no time to engage in a controversy
so far distant from Santa Fe.
Despite the governor's lack of interest in their quarrel,
the Texans were successful in soliciting the aid of southern
congressmen, whose constituencies might be benefitted by
a trans-continental railroad, were it to follow a southern
route. As a result of their interference, a senate report on
the boundary dispute stated that the American com-
missioner, Bartlett, had acted beyond his authority in
acknowledging the Mexican claims to the Mesilla Valley.8
At their instigation, congress approved an appropriation of
$100,000 for a second survey, which was to be made under
the direction of army engineers.9 The positive interest of
congress in the Mesilla question served to strength the
bellicose attitude of the Americans in the Valley.
With the arrival of William Carr Lane as governor of
New Mexico, replacing Calhoun who had died while in
office, the Americans in Mesilla procured a champion not
so far distant as the national capital. On March 13, 1852,
Governor Lane by his own authority issued a proclamation
in which he stated that the disputed territory would remain
6. Bancroft, History of Arizona and New Mexico, 468-471.
7. Sen. Ex. Docs., 32 Cong., 2 Sess., no. 41, pp. 13-14.
8. Senate Reports, 32 Cong., 1 Sess., no. 345.
9. Act of August 31, 1852, U. S. Statutes at Large, X, 94-95.
58 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL, REVIEW
under the jurisdiction of the United States "until the
boundary line should be established by the two govern-
ments."10 To maintain his position, determined by the
governor without consulting with the authorities in Chi-
huahua, he asked protection of the inhabitants in the Valley
by the military forces stationed in New Mexico. Colonel
Sumner, who was in command, believed that the governor
had acted without proper authority and refused the support
of the army.11 In the meantime sustained by Governor Lane,
the Texans in Mesilla and Americans coming to that vicinity
from other parts of the territory were making plans to
defend themselves. The governor of Chihuahua, alarmed
at the preparations of the Americans, was reported to be
equally active in defending Mexican sovereignty. When a
serious conflict thus appeared inevitable, the United States
through its agent, James Gadsden, purchased approximately
45,000 square miles of territory from Mexico along the
international frontier. The Mesilla Valley, a small part of
that region, consequently came within the sovereignty of
the United States.12
In the year of the purchase, 1853, the population of the
Mesilla Valley was approximately three thousand, probably
all of whom had settled there after 1848. Farther to the
west in the vicinity of the Gila River, small settlements of
Americans soon appeared who were interested in the copper
and silver mines of that region. Many more settlers would
have been attracted to that vicinity by the possibility of
sudden wealth, but the continued attacks of the Apaches
restricted any extensive migration.
Now firmly established within the sovereignty of the
United States, the law-abiding element looked forward to
the extension of civil law to that region. In the Mesilla
Valley, a rudimentary legal organization was set up, but
farther to the west at Tubac and Tucson, men were compelled
to rely on their own resources for protection of life and
10. House Ex. Docs., 32 Cong., 1 Sess., no. 81, 579.
11. Ibid., 72.
12. William M. Malloy, compiler, Treaties, Conventions, International Acts,
Protocols and Agreements Between the United States of America and Other Powers,
1776-1909 (2 vols., Washington, 1910), I, 1121-1125.
SECESSION IN SOUTHERN NEW MEXICO 59
property. A traveler in that locality during 1853 recorded
that Americans and Mexicans killed each other, and every-
body killed Indians.13 After the discovery of gold in Cali-
fornia, the large number of immigrants passing through
southern New Mexico served to increase disorder. The
Apaches made frequent attacks upon small caravans, and
the Mexicans were not loath to engage in similar practices.
On August 4, 1854, congress added to New Mexico all
of the territory acquired through the Gadsden Purchase.14
Shortly thereafter, the legislature of the territory extended
over it local law and placed the entire region in Dona Ana
County.15 So extensive in area was this county and so far
removed were the inhabitants from the more populous settle-
ments along the Rio Grande north of the Jornada that by
1856 a movement was in progress in southern New Mexico
for a territoral government independent of New Mexico.
A convention for this purpose met at the village of Tucson
on August 19, 1856. At this meeting, a memorial was form-
ulated by the members for submission to congress, asking
for an independent territorial government.16 So certain
were they of success that in September of that year, Nathan
P. Cook was elected delegate. This and subsequent petitions
during the next four years represented ineffectual efforts
by the inhabitants to gain territorial status, regulation of
land claims and mining titles, and establishment of courts.
In this failure of the federal government to establish orderly
government, a fundamental cause for the rapid growth of
the secession movement in southern New Mexico was en-
gendered.
The inhabitants attributed the denial by congress of
their petitions to the unwillingness of free state congressmen
to create an independent territory in the geographical lati-
13. Raphael Pumpelly, Across America and Asia . . . (New York, 1879), re-
ported the conduct of the Americans as rivaling the most wanton acts of the Indians.
A recent study of social conditions in that locality is that of W. Clement Eaton,
"Frontier Life in Arizona, 1858-1861," Southwestern Historical Quarterly, xxxvi
(1933), 173-192.
14. Act of August 4, 1854, U. S. Statutes at Large, X, 575.
15. Laws of the Territory of New Mexico. Passed by the Legislative Assembly,
Session of 1854-1855.
16. Bancroft, History of Arizona and New Mexico, 504-505.
60 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
tude of southern New Mexico. Their opinion was probably
not altered following the defeat of such a bill, introduced by
Senator Green of Missouri late in I860.17 According to the
governor of New Mexico, so thoroughly disheartened were
the people at Mesilla by the neglect of the federal govern-
ment that, in the latter part of 1860, rumors were current in
Santa Fe of a revolutionary spirit among the Americans
south of the Jornada.18
Much of the bad temper was aroused by Sylvester
Mowry, the editor of the Tubac Arizonian, who had first
come to southern New Mexico as a young army officer.
Probably the agitation of Mowry was responsible for the
action of a convention which assembled at Tucson in 1860.
At this meeting, the delegates adopted a temporary plan of
government independent of New Mexico, and proclaimed
their ability to govern themselves until congress was willing
to "organize a territorial government and no longer."19
This convention, which has been called a "direct precursor
of the Confederate Territory of Arizona, which built upon
the edifice already constructed, even to the extent of retain-
ing many of the officials,"20 represented the most determined
effort of the Anglo-American inhabitants up to that time
to establish independent civil authority.
The thirty-one official delegates decreed that Arizona
Territory (for such it was to be called) should include all
of New Mexico south of the parallel of latitude 33°-40'. The
four counties of Dona Ana, Mesilla, Castle Dome, and Ewell
were defined, Ewell County receiving its name as a mark of
respect to Captain Richard S. Ewell. He was reputedly at
Tucson in the interest of mining investments at the time of
the convention and accepted membership at the suggestion
of Mowry.21
After approving a plan of territorial government which
17. Congressional Globe, 36 Cong., 2 Sess., 195.
18. Abraham Rencher to Lewis Cass, Santa Fe, September 10, 1859, N.A., State
Department Records, Territorial Papers, New Mexico.
19. Bancroft, History of Arizona and New Mexico, 507.
20. Charles S. Walker, "Causes of the Confederate Invasion of New Mexico,"
NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW, VIII (1933), 78-96.
21. Mesilla Miner, April 9, 1860.
SECESSION IN SOUTHERN NEW MEXICO 61
included a bicameral legislature, the delegates added a pro-
vision calling for a census for the entire territory. It was
stipulated that the sheriffs should make the census, and
should be paid for the enumeration of slaves as well as white
inhabitants.22 This indirect recognition of slavery was the
only reference to that institution. Not awaiting a popular
election of a governor, the convention selected Lewis S.
Owings of Mesilla. Under the authority given him, Owings
named James A. Lucas, who, like the governor, was a former
Texan, as territorial secretary; Sam Bean, as marshal;
Ignacio Orantia as lieutenant governor, the only. Mexican
given an office; G. H. Oury, Samuel Cozzens, and Benjamin
Neal, as members of the supreme court; and a number of
less important officials.23 Although no census was taken
by order of "Arizona Territory" in 1860, the federal census
of that year listed a total white population of 8,760.24 Of
this number, perhaps a third was of Anglo-American stock.25
The Apaches likewise numbered several thousand, but be-
cause of their nomadic character, government officials could
only approximate their total population.
Although the federal government had secured its release
in 1853 from the ninth article of the Treaty of Guadalupe
Hidalgo, the inhabitants still expected the United States to
provide protection from the Indians. However, it became
increasingly evident to the people that the Indians were
every year becoming a greater threat to life and property.
By 1860, the situation had become so alarming in the vicinity
of Tubac that one correspondent reported "a new outrage
every day."26
For this reason, the people of southern New Mexico
did not evince much concern in the slavery controversy and
the secession movement until the withdrawal of Texas from
the Union in February, 1861. However, most of the Anglo-
Americans were former Texans, whose ties of kinship be-
came evident in the succeeding months. In a letter to an
22. Idem.
23. Idem.
24. Eighth Census of the United States, 1860, I, 566-573.
25. Bancroft, Scraps, vol. 96, p. 23.
26. Idem.
62 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
official at Washington, a visitor at Tucson wrote about this
time that the people in that part of the territory were rapidly
coming under the influence of the secessionists from Texas
and that "the slave power in this Territory [Arizona] and
New Mexico has been as prescriptive of Republicans as in
South Carolina/'27
The first active measure in the direction of secession
for "Arizona Territory" followed the arrival at Mesilla of
Philip T. Herbert, a lawyer from El Paso. In a letter to
"Governor" Owings, Herbert stated that he had been com-
missioned by Texan authorities
to confer with the people of New Mexico and Ari-
zona Territories in relation to the present political
crisis, and invite their co-operation in the formation
of a Southern Confederacy to be composed of such
Slave States as may unite themselves for this
object.28
In arousing the people to the expediency of secession
from the Union, Herbert had the support of a number of
prominent Anglo-Americans. Among these was Simeon
Hart, a native of New York, who had been an early settler
near Franklin, the village on the international boundary
which later was renamed El Paso. After the erection of
Fort Bliss and other garrisons along the frontier of Mexico,
Hart secured a government contract for supplying the
troops with flour. His profits were large, and his invest-
ments at Mesilla and elsewhere in that locality were like-
wise considerable.29 Reports were current throughout the
Valley that Hart offered to lend the Confederacy sums
estimated from $150,000 to $300,000 by provisioning troops
for an occupation of New Mexico. In some quarters, his
support of the Confederacy by the offer of a loan represented
no loyalty to the South but rather a means of protecting his
27. William Need to William H. Seward, Tucson, February 8, 1861, N.A., In-
terior Department Records, Secretary's Office, Appointment Division, Incoming
Papers.
28. Mesilla Times, March 2, 1861. A copy of this paper for this date is located
in the N.A., Justice Department Records, Attorney General MSS., and was received
in that office on July 13, 1861.
29. Bancroft, Scraps, vol. 96, p. 25.
SECESSION IN SOUTHERN NEW MEXICO 63
property.30 The Mesilla Times of June 8, 1861, printed a
statement concerning- Hart, which was written by an
individual under a pseudonym. The writer accused Hart
of being an abolitionist, whose interest in the Confederacy
was selfish financial profits.
Another resident in the southern part of the territory
who welcomed Herbert, the Texan commissioner, was James
Magoffin. Since 1828, he had been living in New Mexico or
Chihuahua, and had been an active participant in the nego-
tiations which resulted in the peaceful occupation of New
Mexico by General Kearny in 1846.31 At the end of the
Mexican War, Magoffin settled at a place henceforth known
as Magoffirisville, which lay a long mile below Koontz Ranch
(or Franklin) and across the river from the Mexican Paso
del Norte. After securing a federal contract to supply the
military in that locality with wood, he engaged the services
of several hundred natives, who became dependent upon him
for their livelihood. On this account, he was credited with
being the most influential Anglo-American south of the
Jornada. His active support of Herbert was significant to
the cause of secession, and he became a leader in the move-
ment at Mesilla and elsewhere in the valley.32
During the time that Herbert was busy arousing seces-
sion sentiment at Mesilla, a similar movement was being
promoted at Tucson by Mowry. In appealing to the inhab-
itants there, Mowry assured them that under a Confederate
government they would find protection from the unre-
strained attacks of the Indians. Mowry, although a native
of Rhode Island, was in a position not unlike that of Simeon
Hart. Supported by financal interests in the East, he had
acquired the Patagonia silver mine near Tucson. Were he
to express Union sentiment, he ran the risk of being driven
from the territory and losing his property. Whether this
motivated his action or whether he was a sincere exponent
30. Idem.
31. Stella M. Drumm, ed., Down the Santa Fe Trail and into Mexico, The Diary
of Susan Shelby Magoffin, 1846-1847 (New Haven, 1926), introduction. In Bancroft,
Scraps, vol. 96, pp. 21-22, a contemporary account of Magoffin's participation in affairs
in southern New Mexico during this period is recorded.
32. Bancroft, Scraps, vol. 96, pp. 21-22.
64 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
of southern institutions is not clearly defined. He was
reported as being the leader of "the band of outlaws who
advocate the disruption of our federal union of states and
who has done more than any other through his paper to stir
up hatred to the North in this part of New Mexico."33
John Rains was another who "walked the streets of
Tucson and dared a man to declare his loyalty to Abe Lin-
coln and the Union." At the beginning of the war, when a
group of army officers passed through Tucson in route from
California to their homes in the South, Rains assisted
Mowry in welcoming them to "Arizona Territory." Their
reception was friendly, "leaving no doubt in the minds of
the officers as to the sentiments of the people in Arizona."
Rains provided all of the officers with fresh mounts and
accompanied them a part of the distance in the direction of
Mesilla.34
The friendly reception at Tucson was doubtless re-
ported upon the arrival of the army officers at Mesilla. Here,
plans had already been made for a meeting of all the people
of the "Territory of Arizona" on March 16, 1861. Accord-
ing to an eyewitness account, this meeting which was "known
generally to be a secession convention aroused Mesilla by the
importance of the occasion."35 The convention was to meet
33. Bancroft, Scraps, vol. 82, part 1, p. 191 ; Mowry was described by a con-
temporary as a "bold and swaggering fellow, ... a leader among men even in
Arizona." When the Confederate army was compelled to withdraw from Arizona in
1862, Mowry remained at his mine, Patagonia. With the arrival of General James
H. Carleton and the federal military force, called the California Volunteers, at Tucson
in June, 1862, Mowry was arrested and was marched through the principal streets of
the town in chains. A reporter to a California newspaper wrote that Mowry was
"taking things quite cooly, puts on a good many airs ; had along his mistress, Private
Secretary and servant. I think a dose of military treatment will cure him. He has
been guilty of writing secession letters and giving shelter to outlaws." Shortly after
his arrest, he was brought before a military tribunal, where he was found guilty of
being "in treasonable correspondence and collusion with well known secessionists, and
has afforded them aid and comfort when they are well known publicly to be enemies
to the legally constituted authority and Government of the United States, and that
there are sufficient grounds to restrain the said Sylvester Mowry of his liberty, and
bring him before a military commission." After being detained for a week at Tucson,
he was removed to Fort Yuma on the Colorado River, where he was held a prisoner
until November 4, 1862. All of his property was confiscated by the federal authorities.
After his release, he went to England where, after futile efforts during the next six
years to raise money for further mining operations in Arizona, he died. Bancroft,
Scraps, vol. 82, part 1, 191, 243.
34. Bancroft, Scraps, vol. 82, part 1, pp. 193-194.
35. Mesilla Times, March 30, 1861.
SECESSION IN SOUTHERN NEW MEXICO 65
at a hall used for various purposes. As the time drew near
for the meeting to begin, business houses closed, and people
were seen moving in small groups in the direction of the
convention place. Before an audience of several hundred,
James A. Lucas called the meeting to order and announced
as the first speaker, General [ ?] W. Claude Jones, a practic-
ing lawyer of Mesilla.
In beginning his address, Jones said that the people of
the territory must choose "the Black Republican banner,
waving over our people, unprotected and neglected, denied
their constitutional rights," or "unite with the South and
ask that protection and equality of legal right which is the
birthright of our citizens."36 At the North, he said, were
only "insult, wrong and oppression," while at the South
a brilliant and glorious pathway of hope, leads to
the star of empire smiling over a Constellation of
free and sovereign States, and inviting us into the
life-giving rays of its galaxy. There is no middle
ground It is too late for compromise.37
He reminded his listeners that the people of Arizona
were southerners in their heritage, and only in the South
could they expect to find a correction of the evils that had
plagued them since they had come as pioneers into the
country. The Confederacy, he promised, would never dis-
regard their petitions as had the federal government, but
would welcome them as a territory into a confederacy of
southern states. Neither would the people be overlooked in
the building of an overland mail route. Under Confederate
control, he predicted that within a year the people would
have a tri-weekly mail service, running from Texas to the
Pacific coast and protected all the way by "hardy sons of
the South, not by prebold [ ?] , mungrel materials from the
U. S. Army."38 In concluding his speech, Jones said :
Arizona constitutes the greatest portion of the
northern [ ?] border of the State of Texas. Your
destiny is linked with hers. You must be made a
86. Idem.
37. Idem,
38. Mesilla Times, March 80, 1861.
66 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
bulwark against the fell tide of Northern encroach-
ment and fanaticism, or you must be a seething den
for abolitionists, from which they can hurl their
incendiary bolts into the heart of the South. You
must be a hot-bed for Northern upas-like exotics,
poisonous to Southern institutions, or you must be
the home of independent freemen, growing and
prospering under the seven starred banner of the
South as it waves protectingly above you. The hell
of abolitionism glooms to the north — the Eden of
liberty, equality and right, smiles upon you from
the south ! Choose between them.39
Herbert, the Texan commissioner, was next invited
to address the meeting. He reaffirmed Jones' promises,
reminded the people again of their southern heritage, and
expressed the hope that the inhabitants were prepared to
take definite action to support what he believed were their
principles.40
A set of resolutions had been drawn up prior to the
meeting, and they were now brought forward by a delegation
of five men. After their presentation to James A. Lucas,
he, as chairman, read them to the convention. Following a
lengthy preamble, in which the aggressions and the neglect
of the federal government were enumerated, eight recom-
mendations were offered for consideration : (1) that Arizona
endorse the action of the southern states ; (2) that Arizona
look to the Confederacy for protection; (3) that Arizona
become a part of the Confederacy, and not a part of any
state that had seceded; (4) that Arizona have a regular
mail service to the Pacific states ; (5) that Arizona take steps
immediately for the election of a delegate to the Confederate
congress ; (6) that the people of the western part of Arizona
be invited to join a movement for union with the Confeder-
acy; (7) that the people of the territory do "not recognize
the present Black Republican administration," but resist
any officers sent to Arizona by that administration by what-
ever means the people possess; (8) that the proceedings of
the convention be published in the Mesilla Times and a copy
39. Idem.
40. Idem.
SECESSION IN SOUTHERN NEW MEXICO 67
of the newspaper be sent to the president of the Confeder-
acy with a request that the same be acted upon by the Con-
federate congress. All the resolutions were unanimously
adopted, and according to the Times, "with three cheers for
Jefferson Davis/' the meeting adjourned.41 Some weeks
after this meeting, notices were posted throughout "Arizona"
calling for an election of a delegate to the Confederate
congress.42 Oury, who had been active in the Tucson con-
vention, was chosen to represent the territory at Richmond.
In contrast with the participation by the natives in
territorial affairs at Santa Fe, under the guidance of the
American politicians, no such support was solicited from
them at Mesilla. One explanation for this slight was offered
by a writer to the Mesilla Times, who said that "one good
company of Texan cavalry can do more to insure their
[Mexican] loyalty to the Confederacy than all the offices
in the territory."43 Some observers in other parts of the
territory regarded as fatal to secession the failure to insure
native support. In a letter to the commissioner of Indian
affairs, a Santa Fe politician stated that the natives of
southern New Mexico were well aware of the feeling of the
former Texans for them, and were only awaiting the arrival
of a federal military force to profess their loyalty to the
Union. The disloyalty of southern New Mexico was at-
tributed to the open state of rebellion which had prevailed
among a lawless group for some years. The only solution
for destruction of the "stronghold of secessionism" would be
to send a strong military force to Fort Bliss, the garrison
located a short distance from El Paso.44
Captain R. M. Morris, an officer located at Fort Craig,
likewise believed that the secessionists were not taking full
notice of the natives. In a letter to his commanding officer
at Santa Fe, Morris said the natives were capable of hamper-
41. Mesilla Times, March 30, 1861.
42. William Need to William H. Seward, Santa Fe, August 8, 1861, clipping
enclosed with letter ; N.A., State Department Records, Miscellaneous Letters.
43. Mesilla Times, July 20, 1861.
44. James L. Collins to William P. Dale, Santa Fe, June 22, 1861, N.A., Interior
Department Records, Office of Indian Affairs, New Mexico Superintendency, Letters
Received.
68 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
ing any military operations that the Confederates might
attempt, and this, he believed they would do. The Con-
federates, he added, had not believed it necessary to employ
the natives, and as a result, "they are expressing a desire to
support the Union, and to join the Union forces, once the
Union marches into the southern part of the territory."45
The most detailed description of the sentiment at
Mesilla in June, 1861 is given in a letter written by W. W.
Mills to Judge John S. Watts, a former justice of the terri-
torial supreme court and at this time New Mexico's delegate
to congress.
I assure you that I find matters here in a most
deplorable condition. A disunion flag is now flying
from the house in which I write, and this country
is now as much in the possession of the enemy as
Charleston is. All the officers at Fort Fillmore,
except two, are avowedly with the South, and are
only holding on to their commissions in order to
embarrass our Government, and at the proper time
to turn over everything to the South, after the
manner of General Twiggs. The Mesilla Times is
bitterly disunion, and threatens with death anyone
who refuses to acknowledge this usurpation. There
is, however, a latent Union sentiment here, es-
pecially among the Mexicans, but they are effect-
ually overawed. Give them something to rally to,
and let them know that they have a Government
worthy of their support, and they will teach their
would-be masters a lesson.46
That there was good reason for Judge Watte or any
other federal official not to come to Mesilla was manifested
by the experience of a federal Indian agent to the southern
Apaches. This agent, Lorenzo Labadie not only had refused
to pledge loyalty to the Confederacy but was believed by
some of the secessionists to be organizing the Indians for
attack against the inhabitants of Mesilla and that vicinity.
According to his own account, Labadie was threatened with
45. R. M. Morris to E. R. S. Canby, Fort Craig, August 13, 1861, N.A., War
Department Records, Letters Sent Book January, 1852 to December, 1863.
46. W. W. Mills to John S. Watts, Mesilla, June 23, 1861, The War of the Re-
bellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies
(131 vols., Washington, 1881-1901), Series I, Vol. IV, 56, hereinafter cited as O.R.A.
SECESSION IN SOUTHERN NEW MEXICO 69
physical violence unless he left the territory immediately.
As a warning to any other federal officer who might think
of coming to that locality, Labadie was told that Mesilla
had ready "a fine barrel of tar" for any officer appointed
by Lincoln who failed to heed the warning. He added that
the secessionists had threatened to "feather him, and start
him out to fly."47
Upon the receipt of this information at Santa Fe, Judge
Sidney Hubbell, recently arrived in the territory from Salis-
bury, Connecticut, as judge for the Mesilla district,
questioned the propriety of attempting to hold court unless
protected by a federal military force.48 The Mesilla Times
in commenting upon the prospective arrival of Judge Hub-
bell at Mesilla, reminded the judge of the action taken by
the people at the March convention, and concluded by noting,
"No comment is necessary."49
Having professed adherence to the Confederacy, the
"disaffected elements" looked forward to a display of military
force from the South in order to strengthen this position.
Some uneasiness was felt in Mesilla when rumors reached
there in June that Colonel Canby was making preparations
for an occupation of the Valley. Communications were
addressed to Confederate officials repeating these rumors
and appealing for protection. Among those who wrote
President Davis was M. H. McWillie, designating himself
"Chief Justice of Arizona Territory," who urged the ne-
cessity of sending an army from Texas. If protection to
the inhabitants were not a sufficient cause for such an ex-
pedition, he offered other considerations:
The stores, supplies and munitions of war within
New Mexico and Arizona are immense, and I am
decidedly of the opinion that the game is well worth
the ammunition. The movement, if undertaken
soon enough, would undoubtedly have the effect to
47. Lorenzo Labadie to James L. Collins, Las Cruces, New Mexico, June 16,
1861, N. A., Interior Department Records, Office of Indian Affairs, New Mexico
Superintendency, Letters Received.
48. Sidney Hubbell to Edward Bates, Santa Fe, June 16, 1861, N.A., Justice
Department Records, Attorney General MSS.
49. Mesilla Times, June 1, 1861.
70 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
overawe and intimidate the Mexican element, which
comprises at least nineteen-twentieths of our
entire population. . . . The expedition, I suggest,
would relieve Texas, open communications to the
Pacific, and break the line of operations, which
... is designed to circumvallate the South.50
McWillie also suggested the feasibility of arming a regi-
ment of Cherokee or Choctaw Indians as a further means of
dominating the natives.51
To what extent the inhabitants north of the Jornada
were aware of the development of the secession movement
in the southern part of the territory during the spring and
summer of 1861 cannot be fully ascertained. Available
evidence suggests that they were far more concerned with
the situation at Santa Fe and at Washington than with the
movement at Mesilla. Their almost complete isolation from
southern New Mexico probably accounted for the failure of
the Santa Fe Gazette and of local correspondents to discuss
in much detail the situation at the south. The renewal of
Indian outrages made hazardous any communication be-
tween the two sections during the summer of 1861. Few
travelers ventured southward from Santa Fe and then only
with military escorts. Most of the accounts from north of
the Jornada indicate some information concerning support
of the Confederacy by the people at Mesilla and at Tucson,
but otherwise they were ignorant of conditions in that part
of the territory. Three months after the secession con-
vention at Mesilla, an officer at Santa Fe wrote to the com-
mander at Fort Fillmore, a federal military post near
Mesilla, that "The extent of the disaffection in the Mesilla
valley is not fully known here and will not be fully de-
veloped there until the civil authorities enter upon their
duties."52 If the officer had in mind the presence of Judge
Hubbell, protected by the military, he failed to clarify his
statement. The Santa Fe Gazette made frequent allusion
50. McWillie to Davis (inclosure), A. T. Bledsoe to Brigadier General Ben Mc-
Cullock, August 1, 1861, O.R.A., Series I, Vol. IV, 96.
51. Idem.
52. A. L. Anderson, Acting Assistant Adjutant General, to Major Isaac Lynde,
Santa Fe, June 16, 1861, N.A., War Department Records, Adjutant General Office Files.
SECESSION IN SOUTHERN NEW MEXICO 71
to the disrupted communications throughout the territory
and admitted that, in Santa Fe, they knew little about other
parts of New Mexico.53 The same issue of the paper re-
ported a rumor that an army of Texans had been assembled
for an invasion of New Mexico.
That such an expedition was more than a rumor was
realized when Fort Bliss was occupied by the Confederates
in July, 1861. Late in the same month, Lieutenant Colonel
John R. Baylor in command of the Second Regiment of
Texas Mounted Volunteers occupied Mesilla. According
to the Mesilla Times, the populace made the arrival of the
Texans a day of celebration. After expressing the gratitude
of the inhabitants at their deliverance from abolitionism, the
Times predicted that under the protection of the Confeder-
acy in Arizona
every field of labor will be developed ; and a golden
age of prosperity and progress will be our heritage,
instead of studied neglect and a continued series of
misfortunes. Well may our citizens rejoice; 'tis
a full theme of joy and congratulations/ We have
changed from sorrow to gladness, from death to
life.54
Two days after the arrival of Colonel Baylor at Mesilla,
he engaged a federal force at Fort Fillmore under Major
Isaac Lynde.55 After a running battle in which Lynde at-
tempted to withdraw, Baylor captured him and the entire
force. From the Confederate viewpoint, the abject
surrender of Major Lynde, for which he was later court-
martialed, had a salutary effect upon the attitude of the
natives.56 The Mesilla Times, after praising the Confeder-
ates for their superior fighting ability, added that the victory
should serve as a warning to any other Union army that
aspired to engage "so gallant an adversary." As to those
individuals, especially the Mexicans, who had heretofore
63. Santa Fe Gazette, May 25, 1861.
54. Mesilla Times, July 27, 1861.
55. James Cooper McKee, Narrative of the Surrender of a Command of U. S.
Forces, at Fort Fittmore, N. M. in July 1861 (Boston, 1886), 7-13.
56. Lieutenant Colonel E. R. S. Canby to Assistant Adjutant General, Santa F6,
August 4, 1861, O. R. A., Series I, Vol. IV, 2-20.
72 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
hesitated to supply the Confederates with commodities, the
Times expressed its opinion that it was now time for them
to look favorably on Colonel Baylor and his army if they
expected to remain in the country.57
After having achieved so signal a success, Baylor now
set about establishing a provisional military government
until the Confederate congress could provide civil authority.
In a proclamation of August 1, 1861, he praised the people
for the action of the Mesilla Convention, and declared that,
in his opinion, a temporary military government would be
expedient because of the prevailing conditions in the terri-
tory.58 He announced the boundaries of Arizona Territory
approximately the same as decreed by the Tucson consti-
tution and ordered that laws heretofore in force in Arizona
and not inconsistent with the constitution and laws of the
Confederacy were to remain in operation. All officeholders
appointed by the Territory of New Mexico or the federal
government were dismissed. Baylor designated Mesilla as
the territoral capital and laid the basis for the judicial
organization of the territory. Shortly after issuing the
proclamation, he named a number of temporary territorial
officers.
At the suggestion of Philip T. Herbert, who had directed
events leading to the Mesilla Convention, William M. Ochil-
tree, a representative from Texas, presented the petition
for territorial recognition to the Confederate congress.
This request was received and accepted without comment on
April 29, 1861.59 Not until November 25, however, did
Representative John H. Reagan, likewise from Texas,
present a bill "to organize the Territory of Arizona, and to
create the office of surveyor-general therein."60 This and
the credentials of the Arizona delegate, Oury, were referred
to the committee on territories.
57. Clipping from Mesilla Times, N.A., Justice Department Records, Attorney
General MSS.
68. "Proclamation of John R. Baylor to the People of the Territory of Arizona,"
Mesilla, August 1, 1861, O. R. A., Series I, Vol. IV, 20-21.
59. Journal of the Congress of the Confederate States of America, 1861-1865
(Washington, 1904), I, 160.
60. Ibid., 475.
SECESSION IN SOUTHERN NEW MEXICO 73
The next action on the bill was taken about two weeks
later when Representative J. A. P. Campbell of Mississippi,
a member of the committee on territories, made a request
that it be placed on the calendar for discussion by congress
on December 18.61 On that date, congress met in executive
session with Oury addressing the members. Six days later,
when the bill was again before congress for discussion,
Representative Campbell recommended the enlargement of
Arizona Territory at the expense of New Mexico. Although
the change was not agreed to, a resolution was adopted which
stated that the Confederacy did not forfeit "the right or
claim ... to the remainder of the Territory of New
Mexico," by limiting the boundaries of Arizona.62 On
January 2, 1862, the bill was before congress, and again on
January 13, when it passed by an unrecorded vote.63 Shortly
thereafter, President Davis signed it and Oury was admitted
to congress as the delegate from Arizona Territory.64
By the terms of the enactment, slavery was to be pro-
tected by territorial and congressional legislation ; and, be-
fore Arizona could be admitted to statehood, the state consti-
tution must provide for the "full, adequate, and perpetual
maintenance and protection of slavery."65 Provision was
made for a territorial legislature of two houses with the
power to override a governor's veto, if supported by a two-
thirds majority of both houses. Congress retained the right
to modify or change any act passed by the territorial legis-
lature or to initiate any legislation that might be deemed ex-
pedient. Appeals could be made from territorial courts to
the supreme court of the Confederacy if the amount involved
exceeded one thousand dollars. However, no such limitation
prevailed in cases involving slave property or questions of
personal freedom.
In contrast with the solicitous interest in the Mexicans
by the politicians at Santa Fe, the Confederate constitution
for Arizona Territory accented its indifference to this group
61. Ibid., I, 551.
62. Ibid., I, 613.
63. Ibid., I. 661.
64. Ibid., I, 691, 701.
65. The territorial constitution is printed in the Journal, I, 612-620.
74 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
by decreeing that all proceedings of the territorial courts
be conducted in the English language.
Although the secession movement in southern New
Mexico reached its climax with the Confederate enabling
act of January 13, 1862, a brief summary of civil activities
under Confederate government seems necessary to complete
this picture. On March 13, 1862, President Davis submitted
nominations to the Confederate senate for the Territory of
Arizona: governor, John R. Baylor of Texas; secretary,
Robert Josselyn of Mississippi, the president's former
private secretary; chief justice, Alexander M. Jackson of
Mississippi, the former secretary of New Mexico Territory ;
associate justice, Columbus Upson of Texas; attorney,
Russell Howard of Arizona; marshal, Samuel J. Jones of
Arizona.66
During the brief period of Arizona's connection with
the Confederacy, territorial government scarcely had time to
function. It is even doubtful that all the officers had reached
their posts before the middle of August, 1862, when the
Union military occupied Mesilla, and cut short further civil
government under the authority of Richmond. However,
during this period two sessions of the probate court were
held, and the property of individuals who were believed to
be opposed to the Confederacy was confiscated. In the
eastern part of the territory, few seizures occurred, but in
the vicinity of Tucson and Tubac, some mines owned by
northern companies or individuals were appropriated under
the direction of Palatine Robinson.67
Brigadier General Henry H. Sibley, who had been at
Fort Bliss, Texas, since the fall of 1861, announced in
December of that year that he was now prepared to establish
Confederate sovereignty over the whole of New Mexico.
In a proclamation issued on December 20, 1861, he stated
that an army of the Confederacy had arrived at the borders
of New Mexico to take possession of the territory, which by
"geographical position, by similarity of institutions, by
66. Ibid., II, 59.
67. Bancroft, Scraps, vol. 82, part 1, 192.
SECESSION IN SOUTHERN NEW MEXICO 75
commercial interests, and by future destinies" rightfully
belonged with the Confederacy.68
He declared that the Confederate army had not come
to the territory to wage war upon the peaceful inhabitants,
but to free them from "the military despotism erected by
usurpers upon the ruins of the former free institutions of
the United States."69 His men, having the highest regard
for the religious institutions of the natives, would insure
their protection. With respect to the strength of his force,
Sibley added :
The army under my command is ample to seize any
force which the enemy now has or is able to place
within its limits. . . . Follow, then, quietly your
peaceful avocations, and from my forces you have
nothing to fear. Your persons, your families, and
your property shall be secure and safe. If destroyed
or removed to prevent me from availing myself of
them, those who so co-operate with our enemies
will be treated accordingly, and must prepare to
share their fate.70
He declared that he had been reliably informed of acts
of intimidation and of fraud which had been employed by
the federal government to secure enlistments in the ranks
of the Confederacy's enemies. He promised that the day
was not far off, when they could rebel against such authority,
and disperse quietly to their homes. "But," he added," per-
sist in the service and you are lost."
As to the future of New Mexico, Sibly said :
When the authority of the Confederate States
shall be established in New Mexico, a government
of your best men, to be conducted upon principles
with which you are familiar and to which you are
attached, will be inaugurated. Your religious,
civil, and political rights and liberties will be re-
established and maintained sacred and intact. In
the meantime, by virtue of the powers vested in
68. "Proclamation to the People of New Mexico," O. R. A., Series I, Vol. IV,
88-90.
69. Idem.
70. Idem.
76 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
me by the President and Government of the Con-
federate States, I abrogate and abolish the law of
the United States levying taxes upon the people
of New Mexico.71
In conclusion, Sibley appealed to his "old comrades in
arms, still in the ranks of the usurpers of their government
and liberties," to renounce service under such tyrants "and
array yourselves under the colors of justice and freedom !"
Shortly after issuing this manifesto, General Sibley
marched north from Mesilla on an invasion of the territory.
The Civil War had come to New Mexico.
71. Idem.
CHAPTER VII
CONCLUSION
HUBERT HOWE BANCROFT, a distinguished writer of New
Mexico history, in discussing the position of this terri-
tory at the beginning of the Civil War, has said :
In a general way, so far as they had any knowledge
or feeling at all in the matter, the New Mexicans
were somewhat in sympathy with the southern
states as against those of the north in the questions
growing out of the institution of slavery. Their
commercial relations in early times had been chiefly
with southern men; the army officers with whom
they had come in contact later had been largely
from the south; and the territorial officials ap-
pointed for the territory had been in most cases
politicians of strong southern sympathies. There-
fore, most of the popular leaders, with the masses
controlled politically by them, fancied themselves
democrats, and felt no admiration for republicans
and abolitionists. Yet only a few exhibited any
enthusiasm in national politics, apathy being the
leading characteristic, with a slight leaning on
general principles to southern views.1
Although Bancroft sensed the importance of officials,
civil and military, in influencing political trends within New
Mexico in the pre-war period, he probably magnified the
interest taken by the natives in southern institutions. What
he failed to recognize is that the slavery controversy was
superimposed upon the natives. They were not interested
in negro slavery, despite the efforts of propagandists and
abolitionists to involve them in a national controversy. With
so few negroes in the territory — the census of 1860 enumer-
ated eighty-five — they could not be expected to appreciate
the contradictory viewpoints advanced concerning it.
Peonage, a system with which they had been familiar from
the period of the Spanish conquest, practically satisfied their
need for unskilled labor. In addition, they enslaved captive
1. Bancroft, History of Arizona and New Mexico,
77
78 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
Indians. From either, they derived all the advantages of
negro slave labor with none of its obligations. Southern
agitators failed to recognize the impossibility of placing
their system of slavery in competition with these local
systems.
Likewise, they were unwilling to admit the truth of
Daniel Webster's declaration that in New Mexico, nature
was on the side of the free states. Even if it had been ad-
mitted to the Union as a slave state in 1860, natural con-
ditions would have aligned it eventually with the free states,
as Charles Francis Adams foresaw. Because northern
leaders recognized this alliance of nature with their
principles, they did not wage so intensive a campaign as
did pro-slavery advocates.
Southern politicians were concerned with increasing
their numerical strength in congress. If New Mexico could
be brought into the Union as a slave state, its support in
the senate would restore the balance destroyed by the ad-
mission of California in 1850. Such procedure appealed
also to local politicians, who were ambitious for political
preferment. The adoption of a slave code in 1859 repre-
sented one step towards the program, which was cut short
by the outbreak of the Civil War. That the South was in-
terested in New Mexico was evidenced by the rapidity with
which southern New Mexico, known as Arizona, was ad-
mitted to territorial status by the Confederacy. In that
section of the territory, allegiance to the South was ap-
parently universal. However, the unanimity reflected only
the support by the Anglo-American inhabitants. The
natives were generally disregarded politically.
In 1861, the latent hatred of the natives for Texans was
revived by federal authorities as a means of winning their
support. This animosity, engendered by the Texas Revo-
lution and by the efforts of Texas to absorb the most fertile
areas of New Mexico following annexation of the territory,
was effective, once the natives were awakened.
Without intent, the nomadic Indians contributed to the
power of the federal authority in New Mexico. Their
CONCLUSION 79
depredations necessitated the maintenance of forts and
troops throughout the territory. By representing the federal
government, the military effectively suppressed any open
demonstrations of sympathy for the Confederacy.
As William Need observed, "despite the machinations
of secession forces who are now straining every nerve, using
every device, pulling every cord, to circumvent the support-
ers of our glorious Union,"2 they were doomed to failure.
Local institutions, an apathetic populace indifferent to
controversies alien to them, and nature itself were aligned
with each other in determining the political history of New
Mexico from 1846 to 1861.
2. William Need to Simon Cameron, Fort Fauntleroy, New Mexico, September
27, 1861, N. A., War Department Records, Secretary of War Document File.
BOOK REVIEWS
Man and Resources in the Middle Rio Grande Valley. By
Allen G. Harper, Andrew R. Cordova and Kalervo Oberg.
(The University of New Mexico Press, 1943. Pp. 134 with
twenty half-tone plates.)
It is a very dismal picture of present economic conditions
and prospects of the Middle Rio Grande Valley that is drawn
by the authors of this study. It must be regarded as author-
itative for it is the result of a thorough investigation by
well-trained, experienced scientific engineers whose record,
as set forth in biographical notes appended, leaves no doubt
of their competency.
The silting of the Rio Grande, the erosion of its tribu-
tary country, soil exhaustion, floods, drouths, over-grazing
and over-population are some of the factors which make the
outlook for the future rather hopeless unless drastic and
exceedingly costly remedies are applied. "The great need,"
writes Harper in the foreword, "is the creation of some
organization wherein all governmental agencies — state as
well as federal — could coordinate their efforts in a sound
program of action." No matter, whether the aim is to be
"subsistence" farming on homesteads, say of approximately
twenty to forty acres each, or commercial farming on a
large scale, the Valley will not support adequately the pres-
ent population on its farms. In fact, there seems to be
eventual satisfactory living from the soil for only one third
of the people now located on its agricultural lands. The
reasons are set forth in detail and analyzed.
The first chapter describes the land from the San Luis
valley on the north, down to what was once San Marcial.
It is apparent that such low-lying Pueblo lands as those of
San Ildefonso, Santo Domingo, San Felipe, are doomed by
the progressive silting of the river bed. The tributaries of
the Rio Grande carry immense amounts of silt into the
main stream especially during flood times when banks are
cut away and every arroyo carries soil into head waters.
Conclude the authors : "As it leaves its watershed in Colo-
80
BOOK REVIEWS 81
rado, the water of the Rio Grande is clear. When the river
reaches the southern end of the Middle Valley, below the
Rio Puerco, it carries in flood stage ten times as much silt
as an equal volume of flood water of the Mississippi. The
silt load is, in turn, a leading cause of the acutely difficult
economic and resource problems with which man is con-
fronted in the valley."
"The People" is the title of the second chapter. It is a
tri-cultural population living mostly in towns and villages
rather than on the land under cultivation. The Indians num-
ber 11,000, the Spanish-Americans 108,000 and the so-
called Anglos 5,000. The Anglo-Americans are increasing
more rapidly than the other two categories. The Anglo
"introduced a radically different method of settlement.
* * * He was a seeker after a cash crop, not mere subsistence.
He tended to disperse over the area; to him the highway,
rather than the village, was the link between his home and
school, church, postoffice and traders store." Further, the
other settlers "cling to the use of primitive agricultural
practices and farm implements which require little or no
capital investment and are well adapted to subsistence
economy." It takes no prophet to foretell who and what
will eventually prevail in the economy of the middle Rio
Grande valley.
The third chapter deals with the history and causes of
the "Deterioration of Physical Resources." It is asserted
and proof given that deterioration came only during the
last hundred years and that through the Anglo-Saxon in-
truders, who cut timber ruthlessly, over stocked the ranges,
exploited the soil. "Sixty years ago," according to the book,
"the runoff of rains and melting snows was spread over these
meadow-like valleys. Today every large and practically
every small valley has been cut by any ugly-looking channel."
* * * "Sixty years ago the streams carried the clear moun-
tain waters to the lower elevations unencumbered by the
burden of sand, rocks and boulders." The different water
sheds are described from the Chama down to the Puerco
and statistics are given to demonstrate that deterioration
has been progressive. This has caused "The Rise of Eco-
82 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
nomic Instability," the fourth chapter heading. When
General Kearny entered the Rio Grande valley in 1846
he found that the economy of the two ethnic groups was
on the subsistence basis. "Food crops, such as wheat, corn,
beans, squash and chili were home grown, locally processed
and stored. Cattle, sheep, goats, hogs, chickens, as well as
deer and antelope, were the source of meat supply. Cloth-
ing was largely made from home grown wool and cotton;
leather, from various hides. Houses were built from adobe
bricks and vigas from the nearby foothills. The irrigable
land resources were about 200,000 acres. Several million
acres of grazing land were free and accessible to the Spanish
and Indian users alike." In brief : "A uniformity of economic
and social position prevailed. The production of surpluses
was as unusual as the existence of want; nobody had too
much or too little of anything. In the Spanish villages life
was extremely simple, stable and integrated upon a single
level of economic well being."
How different today : "Dependency is diversified ; only
thirty per cent of the population are dependent upon farm
operation ; the rest depend upon various forms of wage and
relief work, salaries and private incomes derived from
outside of the valley."
A broad program for "Solving the Problems of the
Middle Valley" is presented in the final chapter. Public
education, vocational training, building of dams to increase
water supply for irrigation and to prevent silting. "The
health of the Spanish Americans is a major problem"
according to the authors. "Basically the cause of their high
death and disease rates is rooted in their poverty, but apart
from this conditioning factor, there are others ; the ignor-
ance of the people as to proper methods of personal hygiene ;
the superstitious beliefs of the people in homely remedies,
herb doctors (curanderos) and evil influences; the practice
of untrained and incompetent midwives ; the effects of prim-
itive systems of sanitation; and the pollution of domestic
water supplies." In conclusion "the problems which have
arisen from man's efforts to exploit the natural resources
of the Middle Rio Grande Valley for his economic benefit
BOOK REVIEWS 83
are incredibly difficult; worse still, these problems, so long
as they remain unsolved, offer critical menace to our Amer-
ican democracy."
An index, a brief bibliography and fine reproductions
of good photographs, add to the value of the volume, which
is undoubtedly thus far one of the most useful productions
of the School of Inter-American Affairs of the State Uni-
versity, reflecting great credit upon the head of the school
and general editor of its publications, Dr. Joaquin Ortega.
—P. A. F. W.
Mission Monuments of New Mexico. By Edgar L. Hewett
and Reginald G. Fisher. (The University of New Mexico
Press, Albuquerque, 1943; 270 pp., illustrations, bibliog.,
index. $4.00)
Another of Dr. Hewett' s series, Handbooks of Archae-
ological History, is from the press and, while Landmarks
of New Mexico may have a more general and popular appeal,
many will regard this volume on the historical missions as
decidedly the best of the series to date. Perhaps we are
prejudiced, for, as the authors agree, the book is about
nine-tenths history with only a modicum of archaeology;
and also, as is evident throughout, the authors have been
well posted as to the results of historical research in this
field during recent years.
It was a happy thought to trace our missionary era
in the Southwest from its beginning in the Umbrian hills
of Italy. After the Foreword and chapter on "Myth, legend
and history" by Dr. Hewett, Dr. Fisher gives an adequate
and very sympathetic account of Francis of Assisi, of the
Franciscan Order which he founded, and of the long trail
followed from Assisi to Santa Fe. Chapter III, "The strug-
gle for the faith," is a portrayal of the dramatic seventeenth
century from the first colonizing to the tragic Indian revolt
of 1680, and is followed by a chapter on "Sanctuaries that
survived." One of these sanctuaries, however, (Acoma) is
grouped by Dr. Hewett with Pecos, Quarai, Abo, "Gran
Quivira," and Jemez in what he terms "the Archaic Group."
These six missions are the theme of the last chapters:
84 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
"Ruins of the greater outposts of the Cross" and "Reclama-
tion and re-dedication." And here archaeology comes into
its own, showing, in the work of excavation, results which
are remarkable, almost incredible, to those who knew all
except Acoma in their former ruined state.
Dr. Fisher has added several interesting appendices,
and here a few corrections might be suggested. Even three
of the "Errata" (p. 270) could well be omitted: "Fray
Francisco de Jesus Maria" (as he always signed himself)
appears as "Casanas" only in later records; there was no
"Fray Juan de Morales" nor anyone martyred at San Juan
in 1680; while Carbonell (or Carboneli) was killed at San
Cristobal instead of at Taos.
Turning to the list of martyrs (pp. 243-244), probably
both Fray Diego de San Lucas and Fray Juan Minguez
should be omitted ; it is true that both were killed in Indian
attacks but neither was a martyr in the proper sense of that
term. On the other hand, the list of custodians (p. 245)
lacks at least eight names to be complete for the period
indicated.
Perea did not bring twenty-nine new" missionaries in
1629 (p. 86). By his own account (and confirmed by
Contaduria records) he brought only twenty-one. Of those
listed by Dr. Fisher, some were already in New Mexico;
Gonzales died on the way north; San Francisco and San
Lucas were other lay-brothers. Fray Juan Ramirez here
and "Manso's successor" of the same name (pp. 97-98)
were two different men. The use of the census of 1749 (p.
109) is somewhat misleading, for eleven other missions
"del Paso" and of the "Junta de los Rios" have been omitted,
both of which groups were parts of New Mexico in Spanish
times. Indeed, when he made up this census, the custodian,
Varo, was himself located at Senecu del Sur! The popula-
tion of New Mexico by the complete census was 23,001
instead of the figure here shown.
We question also whether "greed and thirst for power"
(p. 102) are an adequate explanation for the tragic Indian
revolt of 1680. That violent climax was caused chiefly by
the resort to force instead of persuasion by Spaniards and
BOOK REVIEWS 85
Franciscans alike. We have evidence of it through the
seventeenth century in such "discipline" as the cutting off
of chongos and burning with hot tar; in the seizing and
destroying of native paraphernalia and preventing of native
ceremonies; in the dealing with "witchcraft" even to the
public whipping and hanging of their native priests (called
"sorcerers") ; culminating finally while Trevino was gov-
ernor in the destroying of their kivas — the very heart of
native religion. This last outrage on the natives was re-
peated during the reconquest, and it was perpetrated still a
third time while Mogollon was governor. All of this, surely,
was quite foreign to the spirit of Saint Francis; and the
tragic pity of it, that it should largely have nullified the
heroic lives of so many of the Franciscan fathers and even
the martyr blood with which so many of the pueblos had
been watered.
The authors have made an excellent use of illustrations
throughout the text. These include the St. Francis murals
by the late Donald Beauregard (several of which were fin-
ished by Carlos Vierra and Kenneth Chapman) ; the Vierra
series of mission paintings ; and photographs of the major
missions before and after their excavation. — L. B. B.
Life in Old Twcson. By Frank C. Lockwood, University of
Arizona. Published by the Tucson Civic Committee. (The
Ward Ritchie Press, Los Angeles, 1943. Pp. 255, illustrated.)
Biographical sketches of a dozen or more Tucson pio-
neers give a lively picture of events in Tucson in the transi-
tion period from 1854 to 1864 — from the days of the Gadsden
Purchase to the closing days of the Civil War — during
which Arizona emerged as a separate territory. Somewhat
akin in manner to as old a method as that of Plutarch, the
author tells the story of an assorted lot of picturesque
characters, ranging from notorious outlaws to famous
financiers and Army men, including in his gallery of por-
traits both Confederates and Federals. Purporting to be
motivated by the childhood reminiscences of Atanacia Santa
Cruz, the widow of Sam Hughes, he admits in his preface:
"In the minds of most old-timers, everything that had
86 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
to do with remote days, or even events of the recent past,
seemed to be in a muddle." Further: "No two old-timers
agreed as to any fact of the past, and the older the inhabitant
the more he had his facts mixed." The author, who is on
the faculty of the University of Arizona, therefore, searched
old newspaper files, official records and read numerous
magazine articles and early volumes, and thus produced a
book which is as fascinating as it is authoritative, as far
as any history of that kind can be authoritative. The period
covered was a wild one in southern Arizona, and Tucson
was the center of happenings which gave color to many
stories of "The Wild West."— P. A. F. W.
A Doctor Comes to California. The Diary of John S. Griffin,
Assistant Surgeon with Keamy's Dragoons, 1846-1847.
Introduction and notes by George Walcott Ames, Jr. ; fore-
word by George D. Lyman, M. D. (California Historical
Society, San Francisco, 1943, 97 pp.)
Griffin's diary and Emory's Notes of a Military Recon-
noissance . . . constitute the only complete contemporary
accounts of Kearny's march from Santa Fe to San Diego.
Griffin's story was used by Bancroft, but this is its first
publication in full. It is divided into two parts : a narrative
of the trip to Warner's Ranch, near San Diego ; and Kearny's
part in the conquest of California with supplementary
information about the doctor's experiences in Los Angeles
and San Diego. Forty-nine pages of the journal cover the
overland trip and fighting, and twenty-six pages deal with
his experiences after hostilities had ceased.
The annotation is well done with eight and a half pages
of notes. Four maps are reproduced from Emory's Notes,
showing the route from Santa Fe to the Copper Mines, from
the Mines to the Maricopa Village, the Village to Warner's
Ranch, and thence to San Diego and Los Angeles.
A twelve page foreword furnishes a touch of glorifica-
tion for Kearny's dragoons, quite in contrast with the
doctor's rather straightforward account of their experiences.
The diarist was an observer of the flora and fauna of the
region traversed ; he was able to appreciate the scenic beauty
BOOK REVIEWS 87
despite the hardships of the trail; and his descriptions of
medical treatment reveal the great progress made in
medicine during the past few generations.
The balmy climate of southern California attracted Dr.
Griffin, as many a later American, and after a few more
years in army service he lived in Los Angeles until his death
in 1898, a highly respected citizen and prominent surgeon.
— FRANK D. REEVE.
NECROLOGY
Ira L. Grimshaw. — On New Year's day, 1943, Ira L.
Grimshaw answered the last summons from a notable career
which gave him national prominence after having attained
distinction in his chosen profession in New Mexico. He
died in the prime of life, having been born in Denver, Colo-
rado on December 31, 1886, death having occurred a day
after his 57th birthday. He was the son of S. B. Grimshaw,
who had been superintendent of the New Mexico Central
Railroad and later was postmaster of Santa Fe. Young
Grimshaw attended the University of Michigan from which
he received his B. A. degree and studied law in the offices
of the late Aloys B. Renehan and of Catron and Gortner,
a partnership consisting of Hon. Thomas B. Catron, who
became U. S. senator from New Mexico, and Robert C.
Gortner, who after serving as district attorney for the
First New Mexico Judicial District, took up residence in
Los Angeles as corporation counsel. Admitted to the bar
of New Mexico by examination on January 9, 1909, he
practiced law in Santa Fe until he was named reporter and
law clerk of the state supreme court in 1915, in which
position he made the acquaintance and won the respect and
friendship of bench and bar. He compiled Volumes 20 to
28 of the New Mexico Reports. From 1916 until 1923, he
was a member of the state board of bar examiners. In the
latter year he accepted the position of legal assistant to
Hon. Stephen B. Davis, who had been appointed solicitor
of the department of commerce, and accompanied him to
the national capital. From there he went to New York
City as counsel for the National Broadcasting Company.
The progress he made in his profession before and after
leaving New Mexico is ample evidence of his skill as a
lawyer and of his fine character. Many of us remember
him well as a friend and companion and we share with his
surviving family a grievous loss. — P. A. F. W.
Thomas A. Whelan. — A native of Leake county, Missis-
sippi, Thomas A. Whelan was born on July 5, 1880. He
received his LLB. degree from Georgetown University,
88
NECROLOGY 89
Washington, D. C., in 1912, at the age of 32. In 1913 he
was admitted to the bar in Mississippi, from where he came
to New Mexico three years later as a special agent of the
General Land Office, a position he held until 1919. Admitted
to the New Mexico bar in January 1920, he located in
Clayton, the seat of Union county, where he maintained
his law office for ten years, also serving as district attorney
from 1924 to 1928. In 1929, he took up his residence in
Lovington, Lea county. He is survived by his widow, Mary
B. Whelan. A memorial service was held in the County
Court House with District Judge James B. McGhee presid-
ing. Judge McGhee referred feelingly to the kindness and
sterling character of the deceased who, having no children
of his own, gave generous assistance and counsel in the
education of worthy young men and women. Burial was in
his home state, Mississippi. — P. A. F. W.
Wheaton Augur, who was the republican candidate for
attorney general of New Mexico in the 1932 campaign,
died on March 23, 1943, at his home in Santa Fe after a
long illness, caused by privations suffered during the First
World War when he served in the Field Artillery in France.
A graduate of Yale University and of Harvard Law School,
he had a fine legal mind and attainments. Born in Chicago
on July 18, 1888, he was 54 years of age when he died.
Mr. Augur came to New Mexico for health reasons in 1930
after having been in active practice in Chicago from 1912
to 1930, except for the interruption of war service. He
was admitted to practice in New Mexico courts in 1934 and
was attorney in a number of important civil cases. The
funeral services held in the Episcopal Church of the Holy
Faith in Santa Fe by the Rev. C. J. Kinsolving, took place
on March 24. Interment was in Graceland Cemetery, Chi-
cago. Augur was commander of the Veterans of Foreign
Wars, a member of the American Legion and vice president
of the Santa Fe Kiwanis Club at the time of his death.
Augur was married and is survived by his wife who retains
her residence in Santa Fe and is active in war and civic
work.— -P. A. F. W.
90 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
George S. Klock, one of the oldest members of the
New Mexico bar and for years a member of the committee
on history and necrology, died of a heart attack in his room
at the Vera Hotel in Albuquerque. He was engaged in the
practice of the legal profession for more than sixty years,
forty of them in New Mexico. Klock was born at St. Johns-
ville, N. Y., on January 6, 1859, was educated at Fort Plain
and Whitestown Seminaries, and read law under Judge
W. G. Scripture, at Rome, N. Y. He was admitted to the
New York bar at Syracuse in January 1880, and also was
admitted to practice in Arizona and in Michigan. He came
to New Mexico in 1901 because of tuberculosis and, after
practicing under temporary license, was admitted to the
New Mexico bar on January 14, 1904. A staunch republican,
he served as district attorney of Oneida county, New York,
1893-1898, and from 1909 to 1912 as district attorney of
the Sixth Judicial District, New Mexico. An orator of great
eloquence he was much sought as a speaker on patriotic
occasions, and was an authority on the life of Abraham
Lincoln. As a member of the Sons of the American Revolu-
tion he served as registrar for well nigh forty years. Klock
was a regular attendant at the meetings of the American
Bar Association of which he was a member. Past president
of the Albuquerque Lawyers Club, he also held membership
in the New Mexico Historical Society. He became a Mason
56 years ago and retained his membership in Roman Lodge
No. 223. Funeral services were conducted at Albuquerque
by Temple Lodge, No. 6, A. F. & A. M. He was active in
the Knights of Pythias from early manhood. Mrs. Klock,
wife of the deceased, to whom he was married at Phoenix,
Arizona, March 18, 1902, died twenty years ago. There
were no children.
The following tribute was paid editorially by the
Albuquerque Morning Journal: "Albuquerque residents,
especially the old-timers, are going to miss the pleasant
smile and kindly personality of George S. Klock. The
veteran lawyer died Tuesday, old in years but young in
spirit. He practiced his profession to the last.
NECROLOGY 91
"Uncompromisingly honest, Mr. Klock made a record
for fearless law enforcement in the closing days of the
territorial regime, when he was district attorney here. He
brooked no interference or dictation, political or otherwise.
But he knew when to be lenient, especially when it meant
the salvaging of young men for careers as decent citizens,
rather than denying them that opportunity by branding
them as criminals.
"Mr. Klock's memory went back to Lincoln's time. He
loved to recount the events, and the sayings of prominent
leaders long since dead. But he did not cherish bitter mem-
ories, preferring to recall only the sweet. And that is the
way his friends in Albuquerque will long remember him."
Among noteworthy cases he tried was that of four
young men who caused the wreck of a fast passenger and
mail train in Oneida county, N. Y., which became widely
known as "The Trainwreckers Case." Highly emotional he
once burst into tears when he presented before the New
Mexico Supreme Court a case involving the death of a pet
dog, during which he pronounced an eloquent panegyric
on "man's best friend."— P. A. F. W.
Herman D. Sears. — Not in active practice for the past
ten years on account of illness, Herman D. Sears, a member
of the New Mexico bar since March 1916, died on August
14, 1943, at his home on Canyon Road, in Santa Fe, at the
age of 70 years. Sears was born in Ashfield, Massachusetts,
May 2, 1873. He attended Yale University and graduated
from Columbia University Law School. He was admitted
to the New York bar in November 1902 and practiced in
New York City until he came to Santa Fe in March 1916 for
health reasons. He was admitted to practice in New Mexico
on January 10, 1917. He was a member of the Masonic
Order in New York City. He is survived by his widow,
Mrs. Clara H. Sears who retains her residence in Santa Fe,
and two sisters, the Misses Mary and Blanche Sears, and a
brother, Frederick Sears, of Northampton, Massachusetts.
Rev. Paul Rich of the Baptist Church officiated at funeral
services in Santa. Fe. — P. A. F. W.
92 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
Percy Wilson. — In the death of Percy Wilson at Silver
City, the New Mexico bar lost another veteran who, for
more than forty-three years, took an active part in the
association as well as in the civic and political life of the
state. Although Silver City is strong in its democratic
allegiance, it elected Mr. Wilson, a republican, for seven-
teen terms as its mayor. Mr. Wilson, born on January 10,
1872, at Fort Clark, Texas, was a son of Colonel David B.
Wilson of the United States Army, who at the time was a
lieutenant of the 25th U. S. Infantry. After attending high
school and MacAlaster College in St. Paul, Minnesota, he
entered Princeton University where he graduated with a
Bachelor of Arts degree. Matriculating in the Law School
of the University of Michigan he there received his LLB.
degree. On August 28, 1894, he was admitted to the prac-
tice of law by the supreme court of Colorado, and engaged
in practice in Denver for five years, moving to Silver City
in February 1900. There he was given temporary license
until admitted by the New Mexico supreme court on January
9, 1901, continuing in active practice at Silver City until
early in 1942 when he retired on account of illness. During
his first years in Silver City, Wilson was in partnership
with Attorney Thomas E. Heflin. Later the partnership
of Wilson & Walton was established, the latter representing
New Mexico in congress for a time. This partnership was
dissolved in 1920. In 1925, the firm of Wilson and Wood-
bury was formed with Wilson as the senior member, the
partnership continuing until Wilson's retirement. While
Wilson had a wide and diversified practice, his major work
was in connection with the mining industry and in the
formulation of mining legislation. He was counsel, from its
organization, for the Chino Copper Company and the Gallup
American Coal Company, now the Chino Mines Division of
the Kennecott Copper Corporation. Mr. Wilson was a
member of the first New Mexico board of bar commis-
sioners. Mayor of Silver City from 1907 to 1925, he saw
Silver City grow from a frontier cattle and mining town
into a busy city with modern improvements and public
services. Highly respected by both bench and bar, Wilson
NECROLOGY 93
was steadfast in what he believed to be right, and brooked
no compromise with his regard for high legal ethics.
Mr. Wilson married Violetta Ashenfelter, who died in
1941, and is survived by his daughter, Ava, wife of R. J.
Grissom. The funeral took place in Silver City on September
22, under the auspices of Elks Lodge, with the Rev. Fred
F. Darley of the Presbyterian Church officiating. — P.A.F.W.
Frank Faircloth. — Born in the County of Clare, Ireland,
on Christmas Eve in 1874, Frank Faircloth died in the
Tucumcari Hospital on September 29. Although ill for a
number of years, he was active in his profession until the
Saturday before his death. His parents were Patrick and
Kathryn Faircloth, his father having been a railroader,
which may account for the subject of this sketch being
employed as telegraph operator by the A.T.&S.F. Railway
for some time. Faircloth attended the public grade and
high schools at LeRoy, Illinois and Farmer City, Illinois,
and night schools in St. Louis. He graduated from the
Missouri College of Law in St. Louis on January 19, 1903.
He was admitted to the Missouri bar on April 8, 1905, at
St. Louis, where he engaged in his profession until April
1, 1908. He came to Taiban, New Mexico, September 4,
1908, where he lived until November 1, 1912. He became
a resident of Santa Rosa on January 8, 1913, where he had
his home until his death. For brief periods, Faircloth had
lived in East St. Louis, Illinois, Pocasset, Oklahoma, and
at Topeka, Kansas. Granted a temporary license by the
late Judge William H. Pope on June 26, 1908, he was ad-
mitted by the state supreme court on September 4 of that
year.
The deceased represented the legislative district com-
posed of Santa Fe, Torrance and Guadalupe counties in
the lower house in 1919. He was district attorney for the
Fourth Judicial District for four and a half years, served
two terms as a member of the board of trustees of Santa
Rosa and as treasurer of Guadalupe county for two terms.
A 32d degree Mason, he was past master of Liberty Lodge
No. 51, A. F. & A. M., in Santa Rosa, and also a member
94 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
of the Shrine. He also held membership in the Las Vegas,
New Mexico, Lodge of Elks.
On November 24, 1898, Faircloth was married at
Lostant, La Salle county, Illinois, to Mary Kelso, daughter
of Alexander and Mary Kelso, his wife surviving him,
together with four daughters. The funeral was conducted
from the Methodist Church at Santa Rosa, on Sunday after-
noon, October 1, by the Rev. Therman Harris, the Masonic
Lodge of Santa Rosa officiating at the grave. — P. A. F. W.
Sheldon Parsons. — Sheldon Parsons, one of the best
loved of Santa Fe's artists, died on September 24. He was
a pioneer of the local artist group, having resided in Santa
Fe continuously since 1914. His work is widely known and
is distinguished particularly for warm colors and skillful
treatment of light and masses. His beautiful Southwestern
landscapes are perhaps unrivalled in popularity with visitors
to the region. He liked best to paint outdoor scenes of the
fall season, and his aspen paintings are especially notable.
Parsons was born in New York, April 3, 1866, the son
of a country physician. His boyhood love of nature led him
to the palette, and encouragement which he won while still
in his teens led him to take up study in the New York art
schools, particularly the National Academy of Design and
within a few years he had won recognition as a portrait
painter. Commissions which he executed during this period
included portraits of President McKinley, Vice-President
Hobart, Senator Mark Hanna, Senator William M. Evarts,
Susan B. Anthony, Edward H. Harriman, and members of
many well known families. But his love for the out-of-
doors turned him from portrait painting almost wholly to
the interpretation of nature, and some of his most successful
canvasses during his New York life from 1895 to 1912 were
landscapes from the Adirondacks. Then the death of his
talented wife, Caroline Redd Parsons, caused him to seek
new fields, away from the old haunts and familiar places;
and so he came to the Southwest and to Santa Fe. — El
Palacio, IV (Jan. 1914), 84-97; L (Oct. 1943), 250.
NECROLOGY 95
William Penhattow Henderson, noted artist and archi-
tect whose inspired influence upon Santa Fe homes and
public buildings will be felt for years to come, died in Santa
Fe on October 15. He was born in Medford, Mass., June
4, 1877, of English and French ancestry. He spent part
of his early childhood in Texas and Kansas, finally returning
to Boston where he studied in the Massachusetts Normal
Art school and the Boston Museum of Fine Arts where he
won the Paige traveling scholarship and so was able to
extend his studies to Europe. He did not enter any of the
art schools abroad but visited all of the important galleries
— London, Berlin, Dresden, Madrid, and Florence, and as
a result brought back many canvasses of his own with a
record of his impressions. These were shown in Boston,
and later in Chicago where he taught in the Academy of
Fine Arts.
In 1904, Henderson painted in Arizona and Mexico.
From 1916 when he first came to Santa Fe he devoted him-
self to the painting of Southwestern subjects. As both
architect and artist, he designed, among others, the homes
of Albert Schmidt and Miss Amelia White, and he planned
the restoration of the Sena Plaza, for many years the home
of the Sena family.
His wife, still living, Alice Corbin Henderson, is well
known in the fields of both poetry and prose. — El Palacio,
IV (April 1917), 97-105; L (October 1943), 252.
EDITORIAL NOTES
We regret that two of our major studies were not
completed within the limits of Volume XVIII of our quar-
terly. We may blame it on the war and say that conditions
incident thereto made it necessary to extend over into this
issue. Dr. Smith, formerly at Washington and Lee Univer-
sity and now at the American University in Washington,
was delayed in completing his paper so as to begin in July
as we had planned ; while Dr. Ganaway has been in train-
ing camps for over a year. The latter is now a lieutenant
and (at this writing) is stationed at Clemson, South Caro-
lina. His study will shortly be available in book form also,
as he arranged for it to be added to our series "Publications
in History."
For our April issue we shall have a paper by Eleanor
Adams on "Two New Mexico Libraries of the 18th Century,"
and one by Julia Keleher on "The Land of Shalam: Utopia
in New Mexico." We hope also to have an illustrated paper
by Clinton P. Anderson on architectural alterations made
during the last century in the old Palace of the Governors
in Santa Fe. Representative Anderson was working on it
during the holiday recess of Congress.
The Historical Society is indebted to Mr. Anderson for
three gifts made recently: a typed copy of a private journal
of W. W. H. Davis, July 1855 ; a typed copy of an original
inventory, April 24, 1883, from John C. Pearce (curator of
the Historical Society) to W. G. Ritch (president of the
Society and Territorial secretary) for all books, letters,
photographs, etc. received by Pearce from Ritch on that
date; and a considerable part of the original manuscript
copy in Ritch's handwriting from which the first Blue Book
(1882) was printed. Collating of this last has already
shown a good many misprintings in names, etc. At one
point, four consecutive names were out of place. The inven-
tory or receipt shows a number of items which had been
acquired by the Society during the years 1859-63.
96
Historical "Review
PALACE OF THE GOVERNORS, SANTA
April, 1944
Editors
LANSING B. BLOOM PAUL A. F. WALTER
Associates
PERCY M. BALDWIN GEORGE P. HAMMOND
FRANK T. CHEETHAM THEODOSIUS MEYER, O.F.M.
VOL. XIX APRIL, 1944 No. 2
CONTENTS
The Adobe Palace Clinton P. Anderson 97
The Land of Shalam : Utopia in New Mexico . Julia Keleher 123
Two Colonial New Mexico Libraries, 1704, 1776
Eleanor B. Adams 135
New Mexico's Constitution in the Making — Reminiscences of 1910
Thomas J. Mabry 168
The NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW is published jointly by the Historical
Society of New Mexico and the University of New Mexico. Subscription to the
quarterly is $3.00 a year in advance ; single numbers, except those which have
become scarce, are $1.00 each.
Business communications should be addressed to Mr. P. A. P. Walter, State
Museum, Santa Fe, N. M. ; manuscripts and editorial correspondence should be
addressed to Prof. L. B. Bloom, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, N. M.
Entered as second-class matter at Santa Fe, New Mexico
UNIVERSITY PRESS, ALBUQUERQUE, N. M.
»f the Treas
Hall
Council and Supreme Qourt)
ury, Jan. 16, 1869
NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL
REVIEW
VOL. XIX APRIL, 1944 No. 2
THE ADOBE PALACE
By CLINTON P. ANDERSON
THE DECADE of the 1880's blossomed into importance in
New Mexico by the construction of the Santa Fe railroad
into the territory near Raton and on to the city of Albu-
querque. There the long strands of steel that started at the
terminals of Atchison and Kansas City along the Missouri
river were destined to join with those of the Atlantic &
Pacific railway and stretch across desert and mountain
into Los Angeles to form a trans-continental system.
Albuquerque marked the junction, but Santa Fe gave
to the system its commonly-accepted name. For this, there
was sound reason. From the days of William Becknell, the
Santa Fe Trail had been a route to adventure and fortune.
It had brought the traveler on a "tour of the prairies" and
the merchant with his schooners of silks and supplies to
the capital of Northern Mexico. Over that trail had passed
the Bents and the St. Vrains, a Kit Carson and a Lucien
B. Maxwell, a delicate artistic Josiah Gregg and a swash-
buckling, speeding Francis X. Aubry. Finally, along it
came General Kearny and his American soldiers, sliding
their heavy cannon over Raton mountain on the wooden
paths which "Uncle Dick" Wootton had laid down for
the wagons of the Santa Fe trade, — and a new epoch was
at hand.
Once in Santa Fe, travelers over the Trail, from
Becknell in 1821 to Kearny in 1846 and for another genera-
tion after the American occupation, all made their official
way into the sprawling pile of native timbers and adobe
mud known to modern Santa Fe as the "Palace of the
Governors." No other governmental building in the United
97
98 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
States approaches it in age; few compare with it in his-
torical significance. Yet there were periods when it fell
into a bad state of repair and almost into disuse. Albert
Pike could write in 1831 : 1 "Neither is the Governor's pal-
ace in Santa Fe anything more than a mud building, fifteen
feet high with a mud covered portico, supported by rough
pine pillars."
In the first flush of enthusiasm that followed the com-
ing of the railroad, the people of New Mexico saw visions
of prosperity and sudden commercial activity. The terri-
torial Bureau of Immigration came into being. William G.
Ritch, former secretary and acting governor of the ter-
ritory, became its president on February 27, 1882. He
had just prepared and seen come from the presses the first
Blue Book of New Mexico, into which he had put lists of
early governors, secretaries, members of supreme and dis-
trict courts and odd bits of history. From his pen came
lUicstrated New Mexico, which went through five editions
of more than 20,000 copies in all and finally went into a
sixth edition under the name of Aztlan which Ritch financed
and issued privately. There came a stream of county
publications, such as the Prichard report on San Miguel
County. Ritch was to report that during his first two years
in the office more than two million pages of printed matter
had been distributed. 2
Behind this zeal for publications and more publica-
tions was the intense interest of Ritch in the historical
aspects of New Mexico and his conviction that in its history
lay New Mexico's greatest tourist attraction. He was,
when he assumed the presidency of the Bureau of Im-
migration, also president of the Historical Society of New
Mexico, and the driving force behind that group's ambi-
tions to acquire a notable library and a collection of antiques.
If the new territory was to become great, reasoned Ritch,
it needed to preserve the evidence of its distinguished
ancestry.
1. Albert Pike, Narrative of a Journey in the Prairie (Vol. 4, Publications of the
Arkansas Historical Association), p. 98.
2. Report of Ritch to the Annual Meeting of the Bureau of Immigration on Feb.
16, 1884. p. 6.
THE ADOBE PALACE 99
Thus we have in 1882 a legislative memorial to Con-
gress petitioning that the Adobe Palace be assigned and
dedicated to the "Use, Benefit and Behoof of a Historical
Society." The resolution was sent to the proper authorities
in Washington and was reprinted on the back of the title
page of the second publication of the Historical Society,
the address of Adolph F. Bandelier on "Kin and Clan,"
delivered in the Palace on April 28, 1882.
That resolution supplies the title to this article. The
building was designated as the "Adobe Palace" for nearly
half a century. Prior to the coming of Kearny and his
men in 1846, the term "Royal Palace" seems to have been
used. After the building passed into the hands of the ter-
ritory, at least after statehood was achieved, the term
"Palace of the Governors" became established. But as we
seek to follow the changes in shape, occupancy and owner-
ship of this most venerable of the public buildings within
the limits of the United States, we will remember that dur-
ing the time the building belonged to the United States, it
was most frequently referred to in correspondence, in re-
ports, in files, and particularly in the headings of the gov-
ernment's files as the "Adobe Palace," and it is to utilize
that device of subject limitation that our title has been
selected.
What was the shape, the occupancy, and the general
condition of the Palace when the Americans marched into
Santa Fe? Strangely, the military men who first came
to New Mexico had very little interest in its public build-
ings. We know that they found the Palace in use and that
they themselves adapted it to their purposes, but in the
archives in the War Department there is little to give de-
tailed information as to the building. Even the careful
examination of New Mexico made by Lieutenant Abert
resulted in only this line in his description of the plaza : "On
the north side is the palace, occupying the whole side of
the square." 3
The best description is to be found in George Rutledge
3. Abert examination of New Mexico, House Ex. Doc. No. 31, 80th Congress
1st session, p. 441.
100 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
Gibson's Journal of a Soldier under Kearny and Doniphan.
Gibson went to the palace and gave us his impressions of it.
They were distorted by his interest in the domestic rather
than historical aspects. He saw the ballroom, the kitchens,
the bake ovens, but he found no offices and it may be that the
structure was then used only as a residence of the governor
except for the portion used as a jail.4
Information as to its occupancy also comes from the
laws of the Territory itself. In 1856 the Deavenport code
was issued under the direction of Governor Meriwether.
That code recites5 an Act of January 6, 1853 as to the use
of public buildings and lists as occupants of the Palace en-
titled to the use of its rooms the legislative assembly, the
secretary of the Territory and the governor. We know that
in addition James S. Calhoun, who was Indian agent and
governor at Santa Fe, made use of a room in the western
end of the Palace for Indian affairs.
The best of the early accounts comes to us from W. W.
H. Davis who was appointed United States attorney in 1853
and who printed in 1857 a book based upon the diaries of
his New Mexico experiences called El Gringo: or New Mex-
ico and Her People.
4. "The general was in fine spirits, took us through the Palace, and introduced
us to the ballroom, as well as [to] the private chamber of the governor's lady. The
ballroom is a large, long room, with a dirt floor, and the panels of the interior doors
[are] made of bull or buffalo hide, tanned and painted to resemble wood. There are
various other rooms besides the ante-chamber, which has the lady's private apartment
at one end and the ballroom immediately back of it and parallel to it. The office of
[the] Secretary of State is on the east side, and the guard room and prison on the
west end of the block.
"The rear contains kitchens, bake ovens, and ground for a garden, the whole
being roomy, convenient, and suitable to the dignity of a governor in New Mexico.
Some parts of the building appear to be made bomb proof or so to be intended, but it
would hardly be a defense against American arms. Many parts of the building are
in a state of decay and have been neglected for some time, especially the apartments near
the calabozo. The walls are all thick, and it contains as few doors and windows as
possible." — Gibson, Journal of a Soldier under Kearny and Doniphan, edited by Ralph
P. Bieber, Southwest Historical Series, Vol. Ill, p. 213.
5 . Deavenport code, page 452, chapter 50, sections 3 and 4 :
"3. That the rooms now used by the Legislative Assembly together with the
committee rooms adjoining them shall hereafter be appropriated to the
use of the said Assembly in the same manner in which they are at present
occupied by said Assembly.
"4. That the rooms now occupied by the Secretary of the Territory shall
be appropriated to the use of the Secretary of the Territory, and that
all other property remain at the disposition of the Governor."
THE ADOBE PALACE 101
The account of General Davis would attract my in-
terest, for I believe him to have been a careful worker. In
the Bucks County Historical Society Museum, at Doyles-
town, Pa., there is a copy of his fine work, The Spanish
Conquest of New Mexico, and on it, this inscription : "The
historian, Bancroft, read every page of the manuscript of
this volume before it was put to press. W. W. H. Davis."
Such a man takes his historical writing seriously.
Davis begins his description of public buildings in
Santa Fe by a comment on the court-house, located "on
the street that leads out at the northeast corner of the
square,"6 which he finds to be a building nearly a hundred
feet in length and some twenty five feet wide formerly used
as a store of the quarter-master's department. The court
room, he tells us, is some sixty feet long. Confirmation of
the accuracy of his description of that building can be
found in a letter written December 21, 1851, by Judge
Graf ton Baker, then chief justice of the New Mexico
supreme court, to Daniel Webster, then secretary of state.1
With Davis as a guide, let us start through the palace.
"We enter the Plaza at the northeast corner, and immediate-
ly the eye ranges along the portal of the palace in front
of which we are now standing. It is not far from three
hundred and fifty feet in length, and varies from twenty
to seventy-five feet in width."8
Before entering, we should have a map. In the files of
6. Davis, El Gringo, p. 166.
7. Baker to Webster:
"... I would beg leave to call attention to the necessity of providing
temporarily, rooms suitable for the accommodation of the Supreme Court
of the Territory. The terms of the Supreme Court are fixed at Santa Fe,
and the same rooms might serve for the accommodation of the District Court
of the First Judicial District, and the Circuit Court of Santa Fe County. There
is at the North East corner of the Plaza, a building containing one large
room, (70 by 26 feet) and several smaller ones well suited for the use of juries,
Marshal, and Clerk, which may, with the expenditure of a few hundred dollars
to make the necessary adaptations, be made to answer very well for the
purposes of the several courts located in Santa Fe.
"This building, as I have been informed, had always, prior to the conquest
of the country by our armies, been used and occupied by the civil authorities
of the Province of New Mexico for civil purposes ; — it has been held and,
until recently, occupied by the military authorities of the Territory. . . ."
(National Archives. Misc. Letters. Dept. of State. Dec. 1851.)
8. Davis, El Gringo, p. 168.
102 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
the various governmental departments dealing with the
territory of New Mexico during the days immediately fol-
lowing the American occupation, there are many maps. The
departments of Interior, Treasury, Justice and Army, —
ail had need for drawings and maps of New Mexico. In the
Archives at Washington are many drawings of the Palace,
but for our purposes there are two diagrams which must
be used together if we are to see the Palace as it was when
the American troops entered Santa Fe and as it became
when the American government repaired, remodeled and
to some extent rebuilt the Palace during the years from
1860 to 1868. The first of these was submitted to the gov-
ernment by H. H. Heath who assumed the office of secretary
of the Territory on July 18, 1867.9 The other, far more
accurate, shows the original as well as the rebuilt walls
of the Palace and was submitted to the Treasury Depart-
ment in 1869 by Henry S. Martin, one of its special agents.
There is a background to the preparation of these two
diagrams. The Civil War left its marks all over the nation,
including the Territory of New Mexico. When Heath was
named secretary of the territory, he went to New Mexico
to claim the office as a bit of political patronage thrown in
his direction by his late comrades in arms. Heath was a
former Union soldier, the captain of Company L of the
old First Iowa Cavalry10 and the organizer of the Grand
Army of the Republic in New Mexico.11
Heath was, by any standard of measurement, a bitter
partisan. During the effort to remove President Johnson,
he was to write: "We wait for impeachment."12 It is my
privilege to possess the letter-press copies of his corres-
pondence while secretary and acting governor of the ter-
9. See Heath's letter to R. W. Taylor, First Comptroller of the U. S. Treasury,
July 27, 1867.
10. See his letter of January 25, 1868, to John A. Miller, Esq. Central City,
New Mexico.
11. See letter from Heath, March 9, 1868, to Comrade Wm. T. Collins, A.A.G.,
Washington, D. C., reading in part:
I have the honor to receive General Order No. 4, G.A.R., establishing
New Mexico as a Department and announcing me as Prov. Commander
thereof. ... I shall take immediate steps to organize this Department.
12. Letter dated March 26, 1868, from Heath to Col. J. Francisco Chaves, then
delegate from the Territory of New Mexico to Congress.
THE ADOBE PALACE 103
ritory. In them, he cries out against the "copperheads," he
stands by his old comrades-in-arms, he still wars with
those who opposed the Union.
The public depositor for the territory was Col. James
L. Collins, whose politics displeased Heath and toward
whom the secretary steadily displayed his spleen. On
November 19, 1867, Heath wrote Collins a strong letter,
pointing out that he, Heath, was "Custodian of the Public
Buildings at Santa Fe," that the repairs to the Palace,
then under way, were his concern; that Col. Collins was
permitting the contractor to over-spend the federal ap-
propriation for that purpose, and that as custodian he
demanded that the work cease until further funds were
available.
Now the facts were that, legally, he was undoubtedly
right. The Act of the federal congress of June 25, 1860,
had permitted repairs to the old Adobe Palace, and in fur-
therance of that act, $7,851.20 was expended during the
years 1861, 1862 and 1863.13 An advice to J. Francisco
Chaves, delegate in Congress from New Mexico14 shows
that the amount spent on the old Palace in 1867 and 1868
was $5,869.19 which came from the appropriation for re-
pairs and preservation of public buildings. Heath in the
above mentioned letter advised Collins "you were authorized
to expend the sum of $5000 for those improvements, and
that sum has been by you so expended, and no further sum
has, as yet, been authorized or allowed."
In subsequent correspondence, Heath asserted that
Collins had made political use of the contract for the repair
of the Palace. He was determined not to have that happen
in subsequent elections. He sought to make sure of his
ground by sending to Washington a full report on the con-
dition of the Palace. This report supplemented the earlier
communication of W. F. M. Arny.15 Heath's report was
dated August 20, 1867 and was accompanied by a drawing
13. Letter to J. C. Rankin, acting supervising architect, dated January 26,
1871, to J. Francisco Chaves, delegate.
14. Ibid.
15. Report of W. F. M. Arny as superintendent of public buildings for the
Territory, dated June 13, 1867.
104 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
of the Palace which was for a time at least hung in the
room of the House committee on appropriations.16
Collins, who had been publisher of the Santa Fe Gazette,
was not without his friends. The dispute was referred to
Washington and was temporarily resolved by action of the
interested departments in sending Mr. Martin to New Mex-
ico to sift through the rival claims and specifically to see
what the government got for its money. He inspected the
Palace in September, 1868, wrote his report January 16,
1869, cleared his fellow Treasury employee by pointing
out that the repairs were "substantial and necessary," and
that while there had been "$869.19 more money expended
than was authorized, the Government can well afford to
allow this . . . The enclosed plan shows the new work —
more than was expected — hence the increased cost beyond
estimate."17
To have a clear understanding of the descriptions car-
ried by General Davis in El Gringo, it is necessary to use
the Heath diagram reproduced herewith, but to understand
the transition that took place in the period from 1860 to
1868, it is necessary to have also the Martin diagram of
1869 reproduced at page 97. With these available, we are
now equipped with the necessary guides to help us through
the Palace, following the descriptions of General Davis as
carried in El Gringo to which we now return.
The first apartments we come to in going the
rounds of the palace are the office of the secretary
of the Territory, which we enter through a quaint
16. For the full text of his report of August 20, 1867 see appendix, from House
Executive Document 33, 40th Congress, 2nd session.
17. Letter of Martin to Hon. H. McCulloch, secretary of the treasury, Washington.
January 16, 1869, reading:
My attention having been called to expenditure for repairs of Pub. Build-
ing at Santa Fe, N. M. I have the honor to report that I personally in-
spected the property known as the "Palace" in September 1868. — So far as
completed, these repairs were substantial and necessary, and the property
greatly enhanced in value. There had been $869.19 more money expended than
was authorized, but the Government can well afford to allow this, and prob-
ably $4000, in addition to put in complete order, all of this, the best property
in Santa F6. It is of little consequence who superintends the work., Let it
be well done, and the property is worth enough more to fully justify the
expenditure. The enclosed plan shows the new work — more than was expected
— hence the increased cost beyond estimates. Respectfully, Henry S. Martin,
Special Agt., Treas. Dept.
THE ADOBE PALACE
105
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106 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
little old-fashioned door. The office is divided into
two rooms : an inner one, in which the books and
records are kept, and where the secretary tran-
sacts his official business, and an outer one, used
as an ante-room and a store-room. The latter is
divided by a cotton curtain, hanging down from
the beams above, into two compartments, one of
which is stored with the old manuscript records
of the Territory which have been accumulating for
nearly three hundred years. The stranger will
be struck with the primitive appearance of these
ruins : the roof supported by a layer of great pine
beams, blackened and stained by age; the floors
are earthen, and the woodwork is heavy and
rough, and in the style of two centuries ago.
It will be readily seen that the Davis description does
not fit the Heath diagram ; but by reference to the Martin
diagram we see that the entire east end of the building to
be used for legislative halls of the House and Council had
been completely rebuilt and that a part of the wall of what
was to be the Territorial Library had been reconstructed.
Therefore, when General Davis started on his tour of the
Palace he did not start with the ruins at the corner, but
he regarded himself as entering at the point that then
marked the eastern end of the Palace as it was then stand-
ing and in reasonably good repair.
Davis, therefore, enters room numbered 15 on the
Heath diagram and it is that room which he describes as
being the office of the secretary of the Territory. Actually
the dividing wall which was later to make room No. 16
on the Heath diagram was not then constructed and the
room of the secretary extended into a portion of what is
shown as No. 16 on the Heath diagram.18
18. In his letter to R. W. Taylor, first comptroller, U. S. treasury, dated July
27. 1867, complaining of his lack of facilities, Heath says:
A room 13 x 15, you will readily agree with me, is unsuited to the per-
formance of all the business of this office and its voluminous records extending
back for nearly 300 years. In another room about the size of this one named,
are piled the desks and chairs of the Legislature and about 20 bushels more
or less of books, papers and old manuscripts in every stage of decay and
delapidation. Very many, probably 1000 volumes, being the laws and journals
of the past legislatures of this Territory. [The storage room to which he
refers is numbered 13 on the Heath diagram.]
THE ADOBE PALACE 107
To continue now with Davis as our guide :
We next visit the chamber of the Legislative
Council. Passing along under the portal, we again
enter the palace about midway of the front, and
turning from a small vestibule to the right, we
find ourselves in the room where a portion of the
wisdom of New Mexico annually assembles to make
laws. The room is a comfortable one, with a good
hard floor, and just large enough to accommodate
the thirteen councilmen and the eight officers. The
pine desks are ranged round the wall facing in-
ward, and the president occupies a raised plat-
form at one end, which is ornamented with a
little red muslin drapery. Figured calico is tacked
to the walls to prevent the members carrying
away the whitewash on their coats — a thing they
have no right to do in their capacity of law-
makers. The executive chamber is on the op-
posite side of the passageway.
This, by the Heath diagram, makes very good sense.
We have entered the Palace in the little vestibule which
he has numbered 11 (today the main entrance of the
State Museum). We have turned to the right into room
14, home of the legislative council, and after inspecting that
room we have gone back into the vestibule and on the op-
posite side of the passageway we have stepped into room
numbered 10, the executive chamber of the governor.
To return to Davis:
Next in order is the House of Representatives
— la Camara de Representantes, the door of which
opens upon the portal. This room differs in no
essential particular from the council-chamber
except being about one half larger, and having a
small gallery separated from the body of the room
by an adobe wall breast high, where the "un-
washed" and "unterrified" sit and behold the
operation of making laws with wonder and aston-
ishment.
This is not so easy to identify. Somewhere among the
rooms numbered 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, and 8, plus the corridor 5 and
the pantry 7, is this room. If I were to make a guess, I
should first refer to the Martin diagram and note that back
108 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
of the governor's office there was a kitchen, dining room
and pantry, together with what Martin calls a back kitchen
and pantry. These rooms were quite obviously in a bad
state of repair and quite possibly were regarded as suffi-
ciently private to the uses of the governor so that General
Davis did not examine them.
Also, it will be noted on the Martin diagram that the
two bed chambers as reconstructed in 1869 involved new
walls and it might be that these were either semi-private
or in the state of general dilapidation that the kitchen and
dining room had been in. I should like to imagine that
all of rooms 4 and 6 (and that part of the corridor labeled
5 which extended to the general partition line) constituted
the House of Representatives. Roughly, that area is about
half again as large as room 14. In addition, the room num-
bered 1 could have comprised the gallery which was "sep-
arated from the body of the room by an adobe wall breast
high."
Originally, the entrance from the portal was directly
into the big room through the door which, by 1867, opened
into the hallway marked 5.
All this must be based on the assumption that the walls
on the east side of room 4 and the west side of room 6
were of relatively recent origin. Confirmation of that sur-
mise might be indicated by the Heath diagram which shows
the west wall of room 6 to be narrower than any other wall
in the entire Palace.183 Of course this could as well be care-
less sketching, but the descriptions of Davis would prompt
us to believe that the old House of Representatives con-
sisted of rooms 4 and 6 plus the contiguous portions of the
hallway numbered 5 in the Heath diagram.
Says Davis:
Leaving the hall of the House we enter the
territorial library, which opens into a small vesti-
bule leading from the portal. We find ourselves
in a room not more than fifteen feet square, filled
with books from the floor to the beams over-
18a. The author refers to. the wall which is broken by a door from hall no. 5 into
room no. 6. Unfortunately the thinness of this wall was lost by the copyist in
reproducing the Heath diagram for our illustration. — Editor.
THE ADOBE PALACE 109
head, ranged around the wall on shelves, and
numbering some two thousand volumes. They
embrace the standard textbooks on the various
branches of common and civil law and equity, the
reports of the United States and the state courts,
and codes of the various states and territories,
besides a number of congressional documents.
The judge, other United States officers, and mem-
bers of the bar have access to the library, and can
take out books to keep a limited time, after they
shall have been registered by the librarian, and
being responsible for their safe return. Opening
into the same vestibule is the office of superinten-
dent of Indian Affairs, which, with a storeroom
adjoining, occupies the west end of the Palace
building. Near by is a large vacant room, ap-
propriated to the use of Indians when they come
in to see the superintendent on business, at which
times they are fed by the government.
Here again the Heath diagram is completely satis-
factory. The vestibule leading from the portal is numbered
34. The territorial library, if it is fifteen feet square, could
well be numbered 33 which scales exactly to that measure-
ment. Opening into the same vestibule is number 35
which, by the time Heath was writing about it, had become
the public depository with a vault labeled number 36, and
part of the storeroom, number 37. Earlier, when Davis
wrote El Gringo, this room number 35 could quite well
have been "the large vacant room appropriated to the use
of the Indians."
In the publication No. 29 by the Historical Society of
New Mexico, "The Palace of the Governors, The City of
Santa Fe, its Museums and Monuments" by Ralph Emerson
Twitchell, there is a ground plan of "El Palacio Real" as
it was in 1882, which is here reproduced.
What changes had there been in the ground plan from
the days of Davis to that period when William G. Ritch
and L. Bradford Prince were the president and first vice-
president, respectively, of the Historical Society of New
Mexico, and were involved in the campaign to wrest the
title of the Adobe Palace from the government of the United
110
NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
O W
°^ g
0) S S
§-
r-I C<i CO
THE ADOBE PALACE 111
States? What additional changes took place from that day
until that later time when the full use of the Palace was
vested in the Historical Society?
In the beginning we have seen that the southeast
corner, which was lying in ruins at the time of the Davis
visit, has been repaired by 1868 so that the two legislative
bodies could be moved to the extreme east end of the Palace.
There, in their new homes, each of which was fifty feet long
and in the case of the council twenty feet wide but in the
case of the House eighteen feet wide, they were enabled to
hold sessions pending the completion of the territorial
capitol.
The ground plan of 1882 shows these two rooms as
in use by the house of representatives and the council and
district court; but a diagram of the Palace in the hand-
writing of L. Bradford Prince and submitted by him in
1888, shows these rooms as historical rooms and the ter-
ritorial law library on the opposite side of the hall as
vacant. In 1889 all three were listed as New Mexico His-
torical rooms.
The center of the building has had a more interesting
history because it became involved in litigation and at
various times seemed likely to pass into private ownership.
The Martin map shows the old room occupied by the
territorial council with a room back of it once piled high
with furniture and books, becoming the office of the secre-
tary of the Territory with his document room in the rear.
This had ceased to be the function of the room by January
10, 1877 when William G. Ritch as custodian of the Adobe
Palace submitted to the assistant secretary of the treasury,
a plan of the Palace. In that plan Ritch shows a passage-
way along the west side of the territorial library and
shows the occupant of the rooms on the west of the passage-
way to be William Breeden, attorney general of the Ter-
ritory. The ground plan of 1882 carried in the Twitchell
pamphlet shows the elimination of the passageway and the
use of rooms 5, 6, and 8 on his ground plan, by the attorney
general.
The 1888 ground plan of Governor Prince shows these
112 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
rooms as the offices of William Breeden, M. A. Breeden and
W. B. Sloan. There is this comment on the bottom of the
rough plan of Governor Prince: "It will be observed that
the only portion of this building now used for any neces-
sary public purpose is the historical rooms. Both the Gov-
ernor and Secretary have offices in the territorial capitol."
The secretary of the Territory on October 1, 1889, in
submitting a plan of the building shows these rooms as
"law office of the former attorney general of New Mexico
and now occupied by him without authority/'19 We shall
have more to learn about this controversy in a moment.
When the legislative assemblies were moved to the
eastern end of the Palace, the entry numbered 11 on the
Heath diagram, marked as a hall on the Martin diagram,
numbered 10 on the Twitchell ground plan of 1882 and all
the rooms up to 19 and 20 on the Twitchell plan (1 and 2
on the Heath plan) became the residence of the governor
and apparently remained that way through many years.
The Ritch diagram of 1877, the Prince ground plan of
1888, and the secretary's sketch of October 1, 1889 all so
designate them.
The southwest corner has had an interesting history.
In the beginning of the American occupation it was first
used by the office of Indian Affairs and was so used up to
1856 when El Gringo was printed. In 1867 it had become
the public depository and is so shown on both the Heath
and Martin diagrams. The Ritch plan of 1877 shows the
space as "late U. S. depository and still occupied by the
receiver of the U. S. Land Office of Santa Fe, New Mexico."
The Twitchell ground plan of 1882 shows it as the office of
the U. S. attorney and U. S. marshal; the Prince rough
plan shows it as the residence of the secretary of the Ter-
ritory and the 1889 diagram as the U. S. post office. In
between, it had been the office of the Second National Bank
of Santa Fe, — a further example of the encroachment in
the building of private interests.
The story of the effort to put a large portion of the
19. Records of the Department of Interior, Office of the Secretary, Patents and
Miscellaneous Division 2252-1889.
THE ADOBE PALACE 113
Palace and most of its adjoining gardens into private pos-
session is almost a separate narrative in itself. The contro-
versy came to a head in 1881 and ended about ten years later
when possession of the building was vested in the Territory
of New Mexico.
On July 7, 1881, W. G. Ritch, then secretary of the
Territory and custodian of public buildings, sent to the
Honorable S. J. Kirkwood, secretary of interior, a petition
from the Historical Society of New Mexico that is be per-
mitted to use certain rooms in the Palace not needed by the
government. The next day the then Attorney General Wil-
liam Breeden, the U. S. Surveyor General Henry M. Atkin-
son, John Watts, William Griffin and Brigadier General
Edward Hatch signed a separate and confidential petition
to the Secretary in which they pointed out that they did
not want to be understood as recommending that any por-
tion of the building occupied by public officers be assigned
to the Society, but so far as they were concerned, only the
rooms in the rear of the offices of the chief justice and the
U. S. attorney.
Back of this double dealing was a long series of dif-
ferences between Ritch and Breeden. Ritch had written
to the secretary of interior on May 27, 1881 informing him
that Breeden had entered upon and taken possession of a
piece of land "known and heretofore occupied, as the garden
lot and being as near as may be the north half of the Adobe
Palace property." His letter pointed out that the garden
had been cultivated under permission of Governor Lew
Wallace since Wallace came to the territory as governor.
Ritch claimed that Breeden had taken possession of the
lot with the intention "to erect a building thereon for the
use of the post office."
The device used by Breeden and his friends was in-
teresting. They had attempted to enter on the land by the
use of half-Indian script. The General Land Office later
held that to be an improper use of the script.20
As to the building itself, the U. S. Depository had oc-
20. See letter of C. W. Holcomb, acting commissioner to S. J. Kirkwood, secretary
of interior, June 23, 1881.
114 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
cupied the southwest corner of the Palace and had had
special vaults constructed for its use. It had, however,
discontinued to occupy the space in the autumn of 1876.21
On May 3, 1877 the then secretary of treasury leased the
space formerly used by the Depository to John Sherman, Jr.
for a term of two years. Sherman was then U. S. marshal
of the Territory and it was expected that he would occupy
the rooms. His lease was renewed for three additional
years, during which time a financial institution, the Second
National Bank, moved into the premises. When the extended
lease expired May 2, 1882 the bank gave notice that it had
not vacated and did not intend to vacate until ejected by
due process of law.
The U. S. attorney was given instruction to commence
legal proceedings, but on May 10, 1882 the bank addressed
a letter to the postmaster general saying that it only wanted
to remain in the building for eight or ten months while it
was constructing a new bank building and that it would
pay a monthly rental of $75 for the privilege. L. Spiegel-
berg, an officer of the bank, on July 5, wrote Tranquilino
Luna, then delegate in congress, saying that the new bank
building would be completed by the first of January and
that all the bank wanted was an extension until that
date.
But that did not prove to be the case. The postmaster
general, T. D. Hour, on January 6, 1883 asked the secre-
tary of interior to set aside the old depository space for a
postoffice and the following day Henry M. Teller, secretary
of interior, sent instructions to the secretary of the Ter-
ritory to make the space available to the postmaster. A
month later, an inspector from the post office department
informed his chief that he had been in Santa Fe waiting
for the Second National Bank to move and that "the bank
moved late Saturday night" but failed to keep its agree-
ment to deliver peaceable possession to the department
when the bank building was ready to be acquired. D. K.
Osborne, a clerk of the Texas, Santa Fe and Northern
21. See letter of Charles Folger to H. M. Teller, secretary of interior, May 19, 1882.
THE ADOBE PALACE 115
Railway, headed by T. B. Catron, had jumped the property
as a squatter.22
As usual, Ritch painted a true picture to the secretary
of interior. In his letter of February 23, 1883 to Secretary
Teller, Ritch told how Osborne had jumped the property,
that he had moved in a bed and chairs and that with fire-
arms in hand he declined to vacate the premises. William
Breeden was retained to defend him and Ritch caught the
significance in the fact that Breeden was also the regularly
retained attorney for the bank, as well as an occupant of
rooms in the Palace. While he had been attorney general
for the Territory for several years, Breeden had claimed
that the rooms he occupied were his personal property.
Ritch then gave the real background for the "occupa-
tion." Osborne had indicated that he would not interfere if
the Internal Revenue Office wanted the rooms but that
he would not vacate them for the Post Office. Says Ritch,
"It has been suggested to me that a solution would be
found in the following facts. Osborne is a clerk of a certain
railroad company of which T. B. Catron is president. Catron
owns the building now occupied by the Santa Fe Post Office
and rents said building to the Post Office for a liberal rental.
It is important as maintaining a material value of the prop-
erty thus occupied and that adjoining, also belonging to
Mr. Catron, that the post office remain where it is and
not be removed as was proposed to the property jumped
by the clerk of Mr. Catron's railroad company."
It could hardly be important to tell in detail the rest
of the story. George W. Prichard, who had been made
22. The letter dated February 6, 1883, from L. F. Lee, inspector, to Col. David B.
Parker, chief post office inspector at Washington, reads, in part:
Sec. Ritch, when I showed him your dispatch, agreed to give me posses-
sion of the premises for the Department yesterday morning. When visiting
.the building, was surprised to find the clerk of the Texas, Santa Fe and
Northern Railway in possession, having moved his furniture in the building
during the night. Spiegelberg, President of the Second National Bank, is one
of the principal stockholders or the Treasurer of the Railway. Mr. Breeden,
council for the jumpers is Vice President of the bank. It looks to me as
though the government had no right here that the old Santa F6 ring was
bound to respect. They assert that the building is not Government prop-
erty and that any squatter or jumper who takes possession can maintain his
claim against the Government.
116 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
United States attorney for New Mexico, brought suit
against Fiske and Warren for the southwest corner room
and got judgment against them. Thus began the steady
legal process by which Breeden, Dr. Sloan, Fiske, Warren
and agents of T. B. Catron were forced from the build-
ing.
Into the picture comes L. Bradford Prince, not only
as the president of the Historical Society, but as a member
of the Republican central committee of the Territory of
New Mexico of which William Breeden was chairman. On
December 10, 1884 Mr. Prince wrote to the Honorable
John A. Logan, United States senator, and urged that he
help get two rooms at the east end of the Palace, formerly
used by legislators, for the Historical Society. On December
12 he sent a letter to the secretary of interior making the
same request.
But he could not keep the political aspects entirely
out of it. In a later note to Secretary Teller, he mentioned
that the Democrats might give the permission to the His-
torical Society and he wanted the Republicans to have the
credit.23 Again on February 14 he wrote from New York
on the letterhead of the Republican central committee
pleading that the Republicans should have the credit as a
party for doing what everyone in the Territory approved.24
The appeal was successful. On March 2 the secretary of
the interior turned over to the Historical Society of New
Mexico "two rooms in the Adobe Palace Building formerly
used by the Territorial Legislature."
That was not the end. A later secretary of the Ter-
ritory tried to turn over these same rooms to A. Seligman,
postmaster, in 1888 but he did not succeed. In 1889 the
23. Letter to Teller dated February 2, 1885, says:
The Democrats are sure to give the permission as they have promised
it and I am anxious to have it come from our side so that we can have credit
instead of dealing that to them.
24. Prince to Teller, February 14, 1885:
As the time grows short before the 4th of March I grow more anxious
about obtaining that order for the Historical Society of New Mexico to occupy
the East rooms of the palace at Santa Fe while it still can come from Republi-
cans. Do let us have the credit as a party of doing what everyone in the
Territory approves and will appreciate.
THE ADOBE PALACE 117
post office was moved instead into the southwest corner.
In January of 1889 the war department sought to take
over most of the Palace and it looked for months of if the
army would succeed. Finally General Nelson A. Miles,
after receiving a voluminous file to which many names
connected with New Mexico history were finally appended,
ruled that the Adobe Palace should be transferred to the
interior department "at the earliest convenient date."25
With all the adverse occupants out of the building,
the stage was set for title to pass to the Territory of New
Mexico under a rather definite understanding that the
Historical Society might realize its hope or goal of a perm-
anent home. On June 21, 1898 congress enacted a law
granting lands to the Territory of New Mexico and the last
clause of section 6 read : "The building known as the Palace
in the City of Santa Fe, and all lands and appurtenances
connected therewith and set apart and used therewith,
are hereby granted to the Territory of New Mexico."
That should have ended the matter and it might have,
except that Miguel A. Otero had become governor. In his
report for the year ending June 30, 1899, he suggested that
section 6 should be repealed as the Territory was not "finan-
cially able to take proper care of and preserve this building."
There were other complications. Though it yielded
the building to the Territory, the government wanted the
post office to retain its space rent free. A. A. Keen, who
still lives at Albuquerque to the delight of all who know
him, was commissioner of public lands for the Territory
and demanded from the government annual rental of $600
for the post office space. Governor Otero was not pleased
by the whole situation. Again on October 31, 1900 he wrote
to the secretary of interior and said: "I am still of the
opinion that the old palace building ought to go back to
the government who could properly care for it. I am very
much afraid that if it is not turned back it will go to rack
and ruin. ... I have always thought that this historical
25. Letter of Major General Nelson A. Miles, Commanding, Headquarters Divi-
sion of the Pacific, San Francisco, California, August 8, 1890, to the Attorney General,
United States Army, Washington, D. C.
118 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
old building should have been made a branch of the Smith-
sonian Institution."
But the determination of the governor did not pre-
vail. The Historical Society had fought too long and too
hard for a home. It had ambitions for other displays, both
scientific and historical. It visioned then the possibility
that it could spread through many of the rooms and
enjoy the spaciousness which they would give to its func-
tions.
The agitation to return the building to the federal gov-
ernment died down. The private owners were satisfied with
court decrees requiring them to find other locations. The
Adobe Palace passed permanently into the possession of
the citizens of New Mexico to become as it now stands, a
shrine for the long and varied history of those cultures,
races and flags that have known it in the centuries it has
stood. The oldest government building in the United States
had obtained a permanent custodian.
THE ADOBE PALACE 119
APPENDIX1
Office Secretary of the Territory,
Santa Fe, New Mexico, August 20, 1867.
Sir: The undersigned, appointed by you on the 13th of June
last a commission to "make a full and thorough examination" of
"the public buildings" in this Territory, etc., have the honor to sub-
mit the following report:
That about the time of receiving your communication of the
13th June, Hon. W. F. M. Arny, superintendent of public build-
ings for this Territory, under instructions contained in a memorial
of the last legislature, made a report upon the subject of public
buildings belonging to the government in New Mexico, which report
was concurred in by various officials of the government then here,
and which, it was then thought, covered all the points of informa-
tion desired. Subsequently, however, and upon another perusal of
your communication, we discovered that the report of Governor Arny
was incomplete, the "palace" having remained unreported upon by
him. We have, therefore, deemed it necessary to a full understand-
ing by the Secretary of the Interior of the whole subject of public
buildings in New Mexico, to submit this statement, as a report upon
the only public building in the Territory occupied for civil pur-
poses.
The "palace," as it is familiarly known, is an ancient adobe
building, one story in height, 240 feet long by 36 in depth. It is
of great age, having been erected, according to the traditional his-
tory which exists, early after the occupation of the country by the
Spaniards. During the existence of Spanish rule in Mexico the
"palace" was the chief residence of the rulers of the province. It was
subsequently occupied by the Mexican governers; and since the ac-
quisition by the United States, it has been the residence of the
governors, and parts of it have been occupied for various public
purposes. Its walls are from 2 to 3^ feet in thickness, which,
considering their great age, remain in a remarkably good and sound
condition, with some exceptions.
From time to time, evidently, judging from appearances, since
the erection of the main building, additions have been made, and
probably some new walls inserted. At present, however, with the
exception of the west end, which was improved last year under au-
thority from the Secretary of the Treasury, and which was then,
as it is now, used for a public depository, the whole building may
be said to be in great general dilapidation; few repairs having ever
been made upon it since becoming the property of the government.
This building is at present occupied — 1st, by the public deposi-
tary of government moneys ; 2d, as a private apartment for the same ;
1. From House of Representatives Ex. Doc. No. 33, 40th Comgress, 2d session.
120 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
3d, by the governor of the Territory as a residence; 4th, by that
functionary as an executive office; 5th, by the secretary of the Terri-
tory for offices; and, 6th, by the territorial library.
Under authority of the treasury, recently obtained, the incon-
siderable sum of five thousand dollars is now being expended in
general repairs upon the building and for making such special al-
terations therein as will inure to its preservation, and at the same
time greatly enhance its value to the government by reason of the
increased facilities it will afford when completed to the public offi-
cials whose duties will be performed therein.
These improvements, however, contemplate no material internal
or external architectural changes in the palace. They propose among
other things the removal of the territorial library to a large and
somewhat more suitable room, the substitution of a stable which
adjoins the building for a legislative council chamber, and the room
in which the library now is, in the east end of the building, to be
taken for the house of representatives. Either of the two rooms
proposed for legislative purposes, may, when the legislature is not
in session, be used for the federal courts of the Territory.
It is to be remarked, however, that while the rooms named
are thus to be used for legislature and judicial purposes, they
will be very small; about 50 feet in length, by 20 and 18 feet, respec-
tively, in width. Still it is believed that public economy will be
subserved temporarily by this arrangement, and until the federal
government shall complete the State-house or capitol, now so far
advancd in erection. And it is also to be noted that the library
room, now so entirely inadequate for the purpose to which it is
dedicated, is to be but slightly benefited by the change proposed,
though the new room will enhance the facilities of that interesting
and important branch of territorial interest. The main reason for
changing the library at all is that the two rooms to be used by the
legislature may be brought together.
The outbuildings pertaining to the palace are at this time little
better than ruins, but the contemplated improvements will extend
to them and increase their usefulness.
The accompanying diagram is the ground plan of the palace,
as it will be when the work now going on is completed, and will
be occupied as follows: (See plan, and numbers, etc., in red ink.2)
Numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 12, by the governor as a resi-
dence.
Number 10, by the governor as an executive office.
Numbers 25, 26, 27, 28, and 29, for servants' rooms, store rooms
and water closets attached to the governor's residence.
2. The original drawing of this diagram is in the room of the Committee on
Appropriations.
THE ADOBE PALACE 121
Numbers 20 and 21, for stable and carriage house for the
governor.
Numbers 13, 14, and 15, for offices of the secretary of the Terri-
tory.
Number 11, passage between the executive and secretary's
offices.
Number 5, passage leading through the governor's residence.
Number 16, territorial library.
Numbers 18 and 19, rooms for the legislative assembly.
Number 17, a passage common for the legislative rooms, secre-
tary's office, and library.
Numbers 22, 23, and 24, wood-house and water closets for secre-
tary's office, library and legislature.
Number 33, private apartments of the public depository.
Number 34, passage leading into the public depository.
Number 35, office of public depository.
Number 36, vault of public depository.
Numbers 30, 31 and 32, are wood-house and water closets attached
to the office of the public depositary.
Number 38, a placita in rear of the last named office.
Number 39, a placita in rear of the governor's residence.
Number 40, a placita in rear of secretary's office, library, and leg-
islative rooms.
In front of the palace, and extending along its entire length
and facing a public plaza, is a plain portal or porch, shed roof,
supported by hewn posts seventeen feet high and standing ten feet
apart. This portal is unpaved and unfloored.
The roof of the entire palace is composed of earth, after the
manner of building roofs in this country. The roofing of the portal
is alone constructed of lumber, it being a comparatively recent im-
provement. Much labor is required to insure a water-tight roof over
the main building, the present one being entirely unsafe during any
period of rain.
In the rear of the palace, and extending some 250 or 300 feet
back, is a fertile plat of ground which has been and is still used
as a garden by the territorial executive.
The small round red ink lines on either side of the diagram mark
the windows;3 these, by the improvements now going on on, are in-
creased in number to the extent of four in front and six in the
rear of the building. Hitherto the rooms in the palace have been,
particularly in cloudy weather, exceedingly dark. The increase of
windows will obviate a very serious difficulty.
We have thus briefly, though not very satisfactorily to our-
selves, exhibited to you a view of the palace; regretting, however,
3. In copying the Heath diagram for reproduction, these little markers were not
shown.
122 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
that it has not been possible for us to make it more acceptable. We
venture to trust, at the same time, that our report will, as presented,
subserve your purpose.
In conclusion, we trust that we do not exceed the bounds of duty
in expressing the hope that, although a small, sum of money is being
now expended upon repairs of the old palace, the great public interest
that attaches to an early completion of the public buildings in this
Territory, a capitol and penitentiary, both of which are considerably
advanced in their erection, may not be lost sight of.
Temporarily and for a few years, while the capitol is being
completed, it is possible, by making a virtue of necessity, for the
public business to be transacted in the building upon which we
have reported; but for any purpose beyond such temporary use, it
is just to add that the building in question is now, and will continue
to remain, greatly inadequate.
When the legislature is in session, halls for the federal courts
are now and must be rented. All the offices for the functionaries
of the federal courts have now to be rented, and this must continue
until the capitol is completed.
For the legislature there will be no lobby or committee rooms
for either branch. The latter must be rented; and for no officer
of either house, presiding or clerical, is there a room. Two small
naked rooms 50 by 18 and 20 feet are all that the legislature of
this Territory can have at its disposal for any purpose whatever,
until the completion of the capitol, unless they are rented outside
of the public buildings.
It is therefore readily seen what necessity exists for an early
completion of the capitol in this Territory, not only when con-
sidered in the light of public economy, but perhaps in what is more
important, a due regard to the public convenience, in connection with
the discharge of important public functions by those to whom the
government intrusts their performance.
We have the honor to be, very respectfully, your obedient
servants,
ROBERT B. MITCHELL,
Governor of Territory,
H. H. HEATH,
Secretary of Territory,
J. L. JOHNSON,
Commissioners
HON. W. T. OTTO,
Assistant Secretary of Interior, Washington, D. C.
THE LAND OF SHALAM: UTOPIA IN NEW MEXICO
By JULIA KELEHER
ONE OF the most fantastic cooperative commonwealths in
the long history of Utopian concepts of society material-
ized near Las Cruces, New Mexico, just before the turn of
the twentieth century. The originator of the settlement,
called the land of Shalam, was a John B. Newbrough, of
Boston, the corporate name of the society was The First
Church of Tae, and the articles of incorporation were filed
with the secretary of the territory on December 30, 1885.
The settlement was conceived in fanaticism and built
on an idealistic and humanitarian foundation. In its devel-
opment, however, appeared the personal greed and individ-
ual selfishness which such societies usually encounter but
fail to banish from their organization. Newbrough and his
co-founder, Andrew M. Rowland, came from a long line of
socially conscious reformers. Most of their predecessors
fabricated ideal commonwealths for the betterment of man-
kind out of dreams and wishful thinking, building word
cities on mythical islands, on inaccessible mountains. New-
brough and Rowland transmuted their dream city into New
Mexico adobes on the banks of the Rio Grande.
Not very much is known about the originator of the
project, Newbrough, prior to his New Mexico interlude,
except that he had established a reputation in Boston as a
hypnotist, and had also been identified with spiritualistic
circles for some time. The picture left us by George Baker
Anderson is no dry-point, however, for from him we learn
that:
The doctor stood six feet four inches in height,
weighing two hundred and seventy-five pounds,
perfectly proportioned, extremely handsome, highly
educated, dignified, cultured, refined and distingue.1
That the charming doctor was nobody's fool is quite
obvious from the fact that on his exploratory trip through
1. George Baker Anderson, "The Land of Shalam," Out West, November,
1906, p. 414.
123
124 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
the West in search for a Utopian site, he realized the
possibilities for developing an agrarian commonwealth on
one of the few potential garden spots in New Mexico, the
rich Mesilla Valley land. He took an option on nine hundred
acres, and then returned to Boston to hook the financial
backer of his project, a wealthy coffee importer named
Andrew Howland.
Rowland fits into the Utopian framework perfectly, a
gentle, guileless visionary who might have read about
Coleridge's fantastic plan for establishing an ideal com-
monthwealth in America on the banks of the Susquehanna
River. At any rate, he had some pronounced theories in
regard to social reform, and what was most important, he
had a fortune. He, too, was very much interested in
spiritualism. This Boston background of the two men is
very interesting because it ties up with another Boston
social reformer, Edward Bellamy, whose study of a co-
operative society, Looking Backward, was published in
Boston in 1887. Bellamy's social theories had been attract-
ing a great deal of attention, not only in the New England
states but throughout the country, and it is not improbable
that the two men were influenced by some of his ideas.
Bellamy's Utopian state is laid in Boston in the year 2000,
and the visualization of his ideal picture of society at that
period is projected through the technical advice of a hypnotic
trance. Some authorities on The Land of Shalam contend
that Newbrough got Howland to convert his entire fortune,
estimated at half a million dollars, into available cash for
the New Mexico commonwealth by hypnotizing him.
Whether this contention is accepted or not, it is true
that Howland fell with a thud which pains the modern
reader. Newbrough sold him his plan for purchasing a
tract of land somewhere in the West, free from the com-
plexities of modern civilization, and the establishment of a
city which should be the center of a commonwealth in which
all should be equal. He apparently swallowed, too, New-
brough's fanatical illusions to the effect that although he
had been divinely appointed by Jehovah to buy a tract of
land for the ideal commonwealth, the Lord had told him that
LAND OF SHALAM: UTOPIA IN NEW MEXICO 125
Rowland would supply the money necessary for the ful-
fillment from on High. One of the most revealing clues in
regard to Rowland's character and the humanitarian ideals
which motivated him in the venture is the fact that the
feature which interested him most in the projected set-up
was the establishment of a home for foundling children.
So the coffee fortune was turned into ready cash, and
the two men started on the long journey in Newbrough's
preconceived search for a site for the ideal settlement. At
this point, in one of the most curious chapters in New Mex-
ico's colorful history, Newbrough put on a pre-arranged
burlesque show in an effort to further impress Rowland. He
convinced him apparently that:
Angels from on high had commanded him to
travel towards the setting sun, and that when the
divinely appointed place would appear they would
both immediately and intuitively know it. The
journey was uneventful until Socorro, New Mexico,
was reached, at which point Newbrough told
Rowland that he was getting warm, and that he
felt that they were nearing the place. At Las
Cruces he was very warm, and a few miles beyond
this settlement, he climaxed the show by allowing
himself to be driven blindfolded through the
vicinity; then at the psychological moment, at the
very spot he had previously chosen, which is the
present site of Dona Ana, he stopped, lifted his
hands dramatically to heaven, and rendered thanks
to Jehovah and all the angel ambassadors for their
guidance.2
The commonwealth got off to a good start when it was
agreed that the title to all the land should be invested in
Rowland. The structure of Shalam's government consisted
of an Inner Council and an Outer Council known as The
Tae. Each Council was to have a Chief elected by a ballot
for a term of one year. The settlement drew up no constitu-
2. Ibid., p. 419. Anderson's local geography was here at fault, for Dona Ana
lies, north, not south, from Las Cruces ; also the colony tract of about 900 acres
was not "the present site of Dona Ana" but bottom land which lay to the west,
between Dona Ana and the river. A more extended account, and in some ways more
accurate, is "The Land of Shalam," an anonymous article which was incorporated in
History of New Mexico (Pacific States Publishing Company, 1907), pp. 511-518.
126 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
tion or by-laws, but all of the applicants were required to
enter into what was known as a Holy Covenant which reads
thus:
I covenant unto thee Jehovah, that since all
things are thine, I will not own or possess exclu-
sively unto myself, anything, under the sun, which
may be intrusted to me, which any person, or per-
sons may covet, desire, or stand in need of.3
The members of the colony were guided by a long
tract called Oahspe which Newbrough claimed that he
wrote at the inspiration of Jehovah. The so-called "New
Bible" was a hodgepodge of classical myths, plus the legends
of India and China, larded with nonsense and weighted
with rhetorical ravings. The following description con-
cerning the creation of The Land of Shalam is an example
of its style, and the approach of the author to subject matter :
Next south lay the kingdom of Himalawawo-
ganapapa, rich in legends of the people who
lived here before the flood; a kingdom of seventy
cities and six great canals, coursing east and west,
and north and south, from the Ghiee mountains
in the east to the west mountain, . . the place of the
king of bears ... In the high north lay the kingdom
of Olegalla, the land of giants, the place of yellow
rocks and high spouting waters . . . [After describ-
ing the main irrigation ditch, he continues :] There
were seven other great canals, named after the
kings who built them, and they extended across
the plains in many directions, but chiefly east and
west, [forming a great network through the valley
of the Rio Grande.] Betwixt the great kings and
their great capitals, were a thousand canals, cross-
ing the country in every way, so that the seas of
the north were connected with the seas of the
south. In kanoos the people traveled and carried
the productions of the land in every way.4
3. Ellis vs. Newbrough and Rowland, 6 N. M. Supreme Court Reports (1896),
p. 191.
4. Anderson, op cit., 416-417. Anderson's alleged "quotation" is found to
consist of four disconnected excerpts from the "First Book of God," chapter xxv,
sections 18, 16, and 9. (See Oahspe: A New Bible, pp. 364-365). The clause placed
in brackets, identifying the region with "the valley of the Rio Grande," is not in the
original but apparently is a gloss added by Anderson. — Editor.
LAND OF SHALAM: UTOPIA IN NEW MEXICO 127
One of the most curious publications of the sect, in
addition to Oahspe, was a pamphlet called The Faithists
Calendar. In addition to information concerning Utopian
plans, ideals and ambitions, Faithists Calendar Kosmon 38
contains an involved Almanac calculated for the latitude
of southern New Mexico. Calculations regarding the moon's
phases are mathematically worked out, and parallel mem-
oranda and selections from Oahspe are listed. Of particular
interest to New Mexicans is the meteorological report giv-
ing the general average of temperature in Shalam, N. M.,
during eleven signs, or up to the 335 day inclusive of
Kosmon 37. One must admit, after reading the following
"remarks" that the Shalam weather man was on the job:
Owing to the high altitude and dry atmosphere
of Shalam, the heat is not as oppressive at 110
degrees here as it is in New York or Boston at
ninety degrees. The rainfall during the year was
about ten inches.
The coldest weather we had last winter, the
temperature fell to 11 degrees Fahrenheit. On this
occasion we had ice half an inch thick on standing
water, but it melted away early in the afternoon.
Although the above shows a comparatively mild
temperature, the high winds made a few of the
days in winter very disagreeable, especially as the
people of Shalam lived in huts of poor construction.
Although the high temperature exceeds but little
that of New York and Philadelphia, yet we had
many days in which temperature in the sun rose
perhaps fifteen degrees higher than in either of the
other places mentioned. The peculiarity accom-
panying this high temperature is that there are
no sun strokes, or prostrations from heat as there
are in northern latitudes. The dryness of the atmos-
phere prevents putrefaction in vegetables and
animal refuse.5
Between 1885 and 1900 Shalam's welcome on the door-
mat was broadcast through their tracts and Calendar. A
cordial invitation was extended to Faithists all over the
world to come and share their "blessed home" and make it
5. The Faithists Calendar, Kosmon 38, p. 17.
128 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
one of the "garden-spots of the world." Threading their
very cordial invitations, however, were these admonitions:
Idle or indolent people would not be happy
here. Neither is it an old-folks or a home for
taking in invalids. Yet it is open for the strong,
or the weak, young or old, rich or poor who can
live the life of the commandments. We came not
for ourselves alone, but to prepare a way for the
raising of foundlings and orphans from infancy.
How can Shalam, far away in New Mexico hope to
work any good for the whole world? And this is
what we say back : "Is the problem of life solved ?
Who knows how to live? What of the countless
thousands in the great cities out of employment,
out of food, sick and dying?" Oh, for a home on
Jehovah's plan that the wise, the good, and learned
may find a fact mightier than all the books in the
world !6
Five years after its inception The Land of Shalam was
apparently prospering as an agrarian one. Two hundred
acres of the nine hundred original ones were under cultiva-
tion, and five hundred additional acres had been acquired
through donations and contributions by applicants. New-
brough was an amazing combination of the fanatic and the
realist. That he was "no idle dreamer of an idle lay" is
attested to by the fact that in order to provide irrigation
independently of ditches, he acquired two steam engines,
one six horse-power, and one fifty horse-power, which raised
from the Rio Grande about one million gallons of water
an hour. The subsequent construction of the Elephant
Butte Dam in Sierra County at a cost of seven million
dollars, is ample proof that the Bostonian was a man of
judgment, visualizing the possibilities of irrigation in a
desert country.
Andrew Rowland's dreams for orphans materialized.
By 1891, a large and beautiful home for the orphans that
they had been collecting at the rate of five a year, regardless
or race or color, had been completed. It is interesting to
note that "in front of a tree-lined lawn of the home is a
6. Ibid., p. 23.
LAND OF SHALAM: UTOPIA IN NEW MEXICO 129
gushing fountain, flinging its silvery spray from massive
stone columns."7
One cannot say whether the children liked the uniforms
required, a sack-like garment containing holes for the free
use of the arms, but they certainly must have enjoyed the
bath-tubs which were provided "one for each child." Porce-
lain bath-tubs during this era in New Mexico history were
not on the pioneer's priority list. In fact, it was the wash-
tub doubling for the bath-tub in most sections of America.
The ones in charge of the orphans must be given credit
for the announced intention of teaching them "politeness
and gracefulness of behaviour." The Shalamites had a
practical slant on education, and a modern approach to
vocational guidance which may be seen from the following
lament over the statics quo of the prevailing educational
methods :
To train boys and girls how to use their hands,
is this not education? To learn to work at every-
thing skillfully, this is the method of education
in Shalam. How lamentably stupid is the method
of education in this so-called civilized world ! The
young men and women graduates are as shiftless
as babies!8
By this time several other large buildings had been
erected for the care and comfort of the colonists. Among
these, in addition to the Orphans' Home, was a large
building for life members called a Fraternum, provided with
a living-room, a library, and three adeptries or spiritrooms.
(One of the red-letter days on their calendar was called
"Holy Veil Day," formerly called "Rochester Knockings,"
or the beginning of Modern Spiritualism.)
One of the most significant accomplishments of these
two commonwealth builders, from the viewpoint of those
interested in the historical structure of Utopias, was the
erection of a co-operative store with its various compart-
ments separated by glass partitions. A department store in
Mesilla Valley in this period must have been enough to
7. Albuquerque Evening Citizen, July 18, 1890, p. 2.
8. Calendar, p. 21.
130 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
make even the most lukewarm crackpots join up with the
Faithists just for the opportunity of buying a package of
Arbuckle's in such elegance. The ultra-modern approach
to community life is one feature of The Land of Shalam
which definitely ties up with Bellamy's model store in
Looking Backward. The following description of the settle-
ment gives one some idea of the plant:
The residence of Andrew Rowland contains a
fine library. Adjacent to his home are extensive
barns, stables and corrals where fine Jersey and
Guernsey stock is kept. The irrigation plant is
probably the most extensive operated by a single
owner in the territory. At Levitica, where the
country store is located, are a row of comfortable
cottages designed as homes for laborers and col-
onists. Nearby a well has been dug. A 60 horse-
power boiler runs a pump, having a capacity of
1,000 gallons a minute by means of which the
water is led directly into ditches or into a reser-
voir covering an acre of space. This season four
full crops of alfalfa were cut. In large and thrifty
vineyards hang luscious muscats.9
If the reader wishes a close-up of a few of the upper-
bracket colonists, let him take a look through the telescope
of time at Dr. Bowman, a man who made a considerable
fortune later in California, but who at the historical present,
clad only in a pair of white pajamas is busily engaged in
irrigating the young peach trees. Or notice Dr. Tanner,
the man sitting in the sun with his back against the adobe
wall of the co-operative store. He is the one who proved
his superiority over the flesh and the devil by fasting forty
days and forty nights. Chatting with him is Mrs. Sweet,
a newcomer from California. The lady may be trying to
explain just why she left her husband, head of an esoteric
cult. Probably the fact that he claimed that his body lived
in the reincarnated soul of an ancient being who had wielded
a sceptre long before the establishment of Christianity,
bored her. Notice now the finely proportioned six-footer
coming out of the store — it is none other than the emissary
9. Evening Citizen, July 18, 1890, p. 2.
LAND OF SHALAM: UTOPIA IN NEW MEXICO 131
of Jehovah on his daily tour of inspection of the common-
wealth. Mrs. Sweet has also spied him, and immediately
hurries over to join him, leaving the fasting prophet to
give his undivided attention to the cockle-burrs clinging
to his cotton pajamas.
The colonists were obviously led to believe that all of
them were to enjoy equally a permanent place in the settle-
ment, with no authority on the part of any member or
members toward the exclusion of another, by such a state-
ment as : "We are perhaps the only community in the world
living peacefully and voluntarily together without a mortal
leader."10 By 1900, however, Newbrough began to show
signs of hurdling such bulwarks against authoritarian
power, and his ambitious plans for installing himself as
the eventual owner and ruler of a 1400-acre kingdom on
the Rio Grande became apparent to such colonists as Bow-
man and Tanner who had put money into the common
fund.
The one who precipitated crystalization of dissent,
which had been growing for some time, however, was none
other than Mrs. Sweet, whom Newbrough had married
shortly after she had become a member of the colony. The
lady had ambitious plans too, other than being the wife of
an emissary from on High, and when it began to be noised
around the settlement that she too* had her eye on the
fortune that Rowland had invested in the project, the
colonists most concerned demanded either their money
back, or clear titles to a fair share of the rich Mesilla
Valley land.
When neither money nor a share in the property seemed
to be forthcoming, one of the colonists by the name of Jesse
M. Ellis filed suit in the District Court of Dona Ana County
against John B. Newbrough and Andrew M. Rowland for
$10,000. The verdict of the jury in this trial awarded
Ellis $1500, whereupon Newbrough appealed the case and
took the dream-city to the Supreme Court of the Territory
of New Mexico. On August 19, 1891, an opinion was handed
10. Calendar, p. 20.
132 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
down by this court which reversed the decision of the
District Court.
The Supreme Court review of the case is a lengthy
one, and as curious a document from the viewpoint of
rhetoric, as the literature of the Faithists. The judges who
reviewed the case were: J. D. O'Brien, William D. Lee,
Edward P. Seeds and A. A. Freeman. Judge Freeman
wrote the opinion in which the court frankly admitted that
the case was a most extraordinary one and as far as they
had been able to extend their researches, without precedent.11
The following recitation of the Supreme Court is an example
of the Court's frilled literary approach to law:
The most that can be gathered from the
declaration is that the defendants had conceived
some Utopian scheme for the amelioration of all
ills, both temporal and spiritual, to which ,the
human flesh and soul are heir ; had located their new
Arcadia near the shores of the Rio Grande in the
County of Dona Ana, in the valley of the Mesilla ;
had christened this new-found Vale of Tempe "The
Land of Shalam" ; had sent forth their siren notes,
which sweeter and more seductive than the music
that led the intrepid Odysseus to the Isle of Calypso,
reached the ears of the plaintiff at his far-off home
in Georgia and induced him to "consecrate his life
and labors and all his worldly effects," etc., to this
new gospel of Oahspe. This much is gathered
from the pleadings. The evidence in support of
the plaintiff's demand is as startling as the declar-
ation is unique.12
The reasons advanced by Ellis for joining the colony,
his association with it for two years, and his complaints
against the founders were carefully weighed by the Court.
The facts were established that Ellis had made no sacrifice
of property in order to become a member of Shalam, and
that he could read, and had read the tracts and manifestos
of the Faithists. What was more important, and the crux
around which the decision of the judges was rendered, was
the fact established by the court that Ellis had entered into
11. 6 N. M. Supreme Court Reports (1896), p. 182.
12. Ibid., p. 184.
LAND OF SHALAM: UTOPIA IN NEW MEXICO 133
what was called "The Holy Covenant," (the pronouncement
required by the Faithists of applicants) and therefore:
"Under the terms of this covenant, he cannot maintain his
suit, for the defendants insist, and the proof is clear, that
they 'covet or desire or stand in need of the $10,000 for
which the plaintiff sues."13
The opinion of the court was to the effect that Ellis
was a man of ordinary intelligence, and because he had
entered into the venture with his eyes open, he was there-
fore not entitled to any share in the property. The decision
thus handed down by this court disillusioned those sincerely
caught up in a fog of religious fanaticism, or those who
were interested in tracing a new pattern of social and
economic life, so they stripped off their sack-like garments,
put on their old clothes, and took themselves off to greener
fields.
Newbrough made an effort to carry on in spite of
crumbling foundations in his Utopian venture, and in spite
of serious cracks in his apparent good neighbor policy,
but after a few years of trying to attract new colonists he
got discouraged, and made his exit from the melodrama
by dying in El Paso.
The former Mrs. Sweet was no defeatist, however, and
not to be outwitted by the turn of events had centered her
attentions on Andrew Rowland, and married him. No
attempt was made by her to re-colonize, and Rowland,
always a follower, never a leader, saw the buildings which
his money had made possible fall into ruin, and the people
whom he had sincerely wanted to help, shadows of his
dreams. The closing scene of Utopia in New Mexico is
painted by a contemporary of the period thus:
Andrew M. Rowland, the chief sufferer
through the duplicity of Newbrough, and his wife
still reside upon the property which was the scene
of this unparalleled enterprise. All that remains
of the fortune which he was persuaded to invest, is
the land itself, and a few adobe buildings. He
became widely known throughout the Mesilla
13. Ibid., p. 191.
134 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
valley as a man of many eccentricities. At home he
is usually to be found attired, summer or winter, in
a thin suit of white pajamas enjoying a sun bath
in the corrals of the institution. In spite of peculi-
arities of his personality, he and his wife are famed
for their kindness of heart, and in referring to
them, those familiar with the true history of the
wretched fiasco of The Land of Shalam, should
think twice before they give expression to aught
but sentiments of pity.14
The reader may mentally dispose of Newbrough as he
sees fit, but on the basis of his humanitarian concept of
society, Andrew M. Rowland does seem to deserve a place
in the list of Utopian dreamers. He belongs, perhaps, in
an humble way, with that famous company of men, number-
ing Plato, Thomas More, Francis Bacon, Jean Jacques
Rousseau, and Edward Bellamy, who in a Heavenly Utopia
may be continuing to debate the merit of their common-
wealths, their successes and their failures.
14. Anderson, op. cit., p. 424.
TWO COLONIAL NEW MEXICO LIBRARIES
1704, 1776
By ELEANOR B. ADAMS
IN AN EARLIER article, written in collaboration with France
V. Scholes,1 we discussed the information available
concerning books current in New Mexico prior to the Pueblo
Revolt of 1680. Data about this phase of the intellectual
life of the frontier of New Spain are scanty, and the sources
for the eighteenth century contain very few references to
books. No evidence has been found with regard to books
owned by colonists. In general, of course, there would
have been little occasion to record the books belonging to
private individuals, but it is doubtful that the majority of
the Spanish settlers had many. The lack of education among
the colonists appears to have been still greater than in the
preceding century, and, as before, the friars and the provin-
cial governors were almost the only persons who had re-
ceived the benefit of any formal academic training. Despite
the gradual growth of permanent settlement, life in New
Mexico in the eighteenth century continued to be that of an
isolated frontier outpost, and the chief contact with the
intellectual progress of the outside world necessarily came
through the Franciscan missionaries and the governors of
the province.
Two lists dated more than seventy years apart must
serve as examples of the kind of books imported by these
secular and ecclesiastical leaders. The first is taken from
an inventory of the property of Don Diego de Vargas, the
reconquer or of New Mexico, made at Santa Fe, April 20,
1704, shortly after his sudden and mysterious death.2 The
second is a catalogue of the library of the Custody of New
Mexico remitted in 1777 to the Provincial of the Franciscan
1. E. B. Adams and F. V. Scholes, "Books in New Mexico, 1698-1680," NffW
MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW, XVII (1942), 226-270.
2. Ymbentario de los vienes que se hattaron del senor Marques de la naba de
Brazinas ya difunto gouernador y capitan general que fue deste Reino de la nueua
mexico- , Santa Fe Archives, Historical Society of New Mexico, Santa Fe, Sec. 100.
135
136 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
province of the Holy Gospel, Fray Isidro Murillo, by Fray
Francisco Atanasio Dominguez as part of his report on his
tour of inspection of the New Mexico missions.3 These are
given in the Appendix exactly as they appear in the docu-
ments, with the addition of explanatory identifications of
author and title when this is necessary and possible.
Don Diego Jose de Vargas Zapata y Lujan Ponce de
Leon y Contreras, Marques de la Nava de Brazinas, was
born in Spain in 1643. He belonged to an illustrious and
ancient family whose members included many great soldiers,
churchmen, and administrators prominent in Spanish affairs
over a period of several centuries. It is natural that men
of such an energetic and enterprising heritage should have
turned to the New World in search of even greater oppor-
tunities to exercise their talents and fulfill their ambitions.
Don Diego was not the first of the Vargas line to come to
America, and on his mother's side he was descended from
some of the early conquerors. His career in New Spain
began in 1673 when he arrived in Mexico City as a royal
courier carrying dispatches to the viceroy. For several
years thereafter he served in various administrative posts
in New Spain. In 1688 the Crown appointed him governor
and captain general of New Mexico with instructions to
undertake the reconquest. He reached El Paso in February,
1691, and began the difficult task of restoring the rebellious
province to the Spanish Crown. After a successful military
expedition in 1692, a second expedition entered the province
in the autumn of 1693 to resettle it and establish a presidio
at Santa Fe. The following three years were spent in
subduing the natives by force of arms, refounding the
missions, and establishing the colonists in their new homes.
Vargas' appointment as governor expired in 1696, and his
successor, Don Pedro Rodriguez Cubero, arrived in Santa
Fe in July, 1697. The new governor turned the colonists
against the reconqueror, who spent the next three years in
prison. Meanwhile the Crown acknowledged Vargas*
achievements by granting him the title of Marques de la
3. Biblioteca Nacional, Mexico (cited hereafter as B. N. M.). leg. 10, doc. 43.
TWO COLONIAL NEW MEXICO LIBRARIES 137
Nava de Brazinas and an encomienda in New Mexico.
Vargas was released from prison in the summer of 1700
and went to Mexico City to defend himself against the
charges preferred by Cubero and the citizens of Santa Fe.
The authorities in Spain remained unaware of the whole
unhappy situation until 1700, and, after reviewing the case,
they ordered the viceroy and audiencia to settle it as soon
as possible. As a matter of fact, steps had already been
taken in this direction, and in 1703 Vargas was completely
exonerated. In 1697 he had been reappointed to the gover-
norship of New Mexico to succeed Cubero, and he was now
authorized to resume the office. He reached Santa Fe late
in 1703 and lost no time in re-establishing his authority.
The problem of hostile Indians was as acute as ever, and
late in March of the following year Vargas led an expedition
against the Faraon Apaches in the Sandia mountains. He
was not destined to carry it through to a successful con-
clusion, for he fell ill while pursuing the enemy and died
at Bernalillo on April 8, 1704.4
The day before he died Vargas made a will at Bernalillo,5
leaving in force an earlier will drawn up in Mexico City
in 1703. The latter has not been found. Although he made
a number of specific bequests of his clothing and personal
effects, his books are not mentioned.
There are thirty-three books listed in the inventory
of Vargas' property made after his death. In view of
conditions on the frontier at that time, however, and the
length and dangers of the journey to Santa Fe, it seems
a comparatively large number. On the whole it is a curious
collection for a frontier library.
The largest group of works concerns the history of the
rulers and noble families of Spain and includes Lopez de
Haro's Nobiliario (1, 4),6 Ilustraciones Genealogicas de los
4. See J. M. Espinosa, First Expedition of Vargas into New Mexico, 1692
(Albuquerque, 1940) ; , Crusaders of the Rio Grande (Chicago, 1942) ; L. B.
Bloom, "The Vargas Encomienda," New Mex. Hist. Rev., XIV (1939), 366-417.
5. There is a translation of this will in R. E. Twitchell, The Spanish Archives
of New Mexico (1914), Vol. 1, 301-310.
6. The numbers in parentheses refer to the books listed by the same numbers
in the Appendix.
138 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
Catholicos Reyes by Garibay y Zamalloa (6), Salazar de
Mendoza's Origen de las dignidades seglares de Castillo, y
Leon (13), and Moreno de Vargas' Discursos de la nobleza
de Espana (15). Pizarro y Orellana's Varones ilustres del
Nuevo Mundo (10) carries the story to the New World.
Other historical writings deal with the lives of Charles V
(5) and Philip IV (18). The large proportion of such works
clearly reflects Vargas' aristocratic origin and his pride in
it. Still other titles (Grandezas de Madrid, Menosprecio
de Corte, Tesoro militar de caballeria, a chronicle of the
province of Soria, Solo Madrid es corte, etc.) increase the
impression that this active soldier and frontiersman was not
immune from nostalgia for the things he had left behind
in order to win new glory for himself and his king at one
of the outposts of the Spanish empire. Even his cook book
(23) may have had its origin at court. It is a temptation
to believe that these books were important to him chiefly
as a symbol of a way of life.
Like those of . his pre-Revolt predecessors,7 Vargas*
library contained a few items of politico-moralistic char-
acter (7, 8, 14, 29) and a number of standard works on
law (3, 17, 19, 21, 22, 25). There are also a half a dozen
of the devotional writings found in almost any collection
of this kind. Perhaps the inclusion of the Regla de las
cinco ordenes de Arquitectura (31) arose from practical
motives.
Six items deal specifically with America. Solorzano
Pereira's Politico, Indiana (19, 25) needs no comment, and
we should be surprised if it had been omitted. Gonzalez
Davila's Teatro eclesidstico (12) and Pena Montenegro's
Itinerario (9) relate to the history and practice of the
Church in the Indies and would have been of utilitarian
value in a mission province. Vargas Machuca's Milicia y
descripcion de las Indias (27) is a learned and compre-
hensive work in three distinct parts, which include a treatise
on military science as well as a detailed description of the
Indies. Varones ilustres del Nuevo Mundo (10) and the
7. See Adams and Scholes, "Books in New Mexico, 1598-1680."
TWO COLONIAL NEW MEXICO LIBRARIES 139
life of Gregorio Lopez (28) describe the achievements of
outstanding- personalities in the New World. It is also
interesting to note that Vargas owned a copy of the Mistica
Ciudad de Dios (26). Its author, the Spanish mystic, Sor
Maria Jesus de Agreda, was identified as the famous "Lady
in Blue" of Southwestern legend who was miraculously
transported to that region in the early seventeenth century
and prepared the way for the conversion of certain tribes.
Apparently Vargas had no great interest in the lighter
forms of literature such as novels or the drama, for there
is not one book of this nature listed. He undoubtedly had
little time or inclination to read purely for pleasure, and
his library is that of a man of action interested in books
mainly for their usefulness to him in carrying forward an
old tradition in new fields of endeavor.
Fray Francisco Atanasio Dominguez,8 who arrived in
New Mexico in March, 1776, where he had been sent as
comisario visitador of the Custody of the Conversion of St.
Paul by order of his Provincial, Fray Isidro Murillo, divides
the "kingdom of New Mexico" and its Custody into two
branches. He refers to them as the El Paso branch, consist-
ing of a Spanish villa and four Indian pueblos, and the
more important New Mexico branch in the interior, which
included three Spanish villas (Santa Fe, Albuquerque, and
La Canada) and twenty-two Indian pueblos. Between the
time of his arrival and June 10, 1776, Fray Francisco
inspected all but three of the missions belonging to the
latter group. A letter which he wrote to the Provincial
after he returned to El Paso in May, 1777, and other docu-
ments indicate that he was also acting as custodian.
In June, 1776, he made plans for an expedition to
Monterey with Fray Francisco Velez de Escalante, then
missionary at Zuni. After various delays they set out on
July 29 with eight citizens who had volunteered to accom-
pany them. After traveling a considerable distance into
8. Unless otherwise indicated in the notes, the following account is based on
B. N. M., leg. 10, d'ocs. 42-49, which include letters from Dominguez to the
Provincial, the report of the visita of the New Mexico missions in 1776, and other
letters and papers concerning the New Mexico and El Paso missions.
140 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
Utah, they abandoned the idea of reaching Monterey and
turned back early in October, despite the protests of some
of the soldiers. They reached Zuni on November 24, and,
after resting there until December 13, proceeded to Santa
Fe, making several stops on the way. Apparently it was
during the return journey to Santa Fe that Dominguez made
an informal inspection of three missions he had failed to
visit in the spring, Laguna, Acoma, and Zuni. He reached
Santa Fe on January 2, 1777.
Although the Velez de Escalante-Dominguez expedition
into Utah did not accomplish the results they had hoped
for, it was the first important exploration of that region.
The two friars recorded their experiences in a detailed
diary full of significant descriptive material about the
country and its inhabitants.9
In May Dominguez returned to El Paso, leaving Velez
de Escalante as vice-custodian. On May 27 he forwarded
his report on the interior missions, together with various
documents relating to mission affairs, to the Provincial in
Mexico City. He had not yet begun his visitation of the
missions belonging to the El Paso branch of the Custody
but intended to do so immediately, and on June 26 he wrote
that the inspection had been finished and that he was draw-
ing up his report.
Dominguez* activities and reports clearly indicate that
he was a man of zeal and intelligence. Nevertheless, the
letters and report sent from El Paso reveal great weariness
and discouragement. He begged the Provincial to allow him
to renounce the office of custodian because he felt unable to
cope with the problems he had found in the Custody. This
unhappy frame of mind may have been partly due to the
after effects of the hardships he had undergone during the
journey into Utah, but there is no doubt that he had found
conditions in both the New Mexico and the El Paso districts
far from satisfactory and that it had been impossible for
9. Diario in Documentos para la historia de Mexico, Segunda serie (Mexico,
1854), Tomo I, 275-558; P. Otto Maas, Viajes de misioneros franciscanos a la
conquista del Nuevo Mexico (Seville, 1915), 89-133; H. H. Bancroft, Works, Vol.
XXVI, History of Utah (San Francisco, 1889), 7-17.
TWO COLONIAL NEW MEXICO LIBRARIES 141
him to fulfill certain of the instructions given him by the
Provincial. The parish records were incomplete and in
bad shape, and, because of their ignorance and lack of
interest, he was unable to make use of the testimony of the
citizens with regard to births, marriages, etc. He was even
informed by the Indians that certain alcaldes mayores and
lieutenants of the New Mexico pueblos had removed the
"libros de administration" from the missions "cuyas hojas
se han chupado."10 Moreover, after an outbreak in 1764,
Governor Tomas Velez Cachupin, with the consent of some
of the friars, had shut up a number of culprits "en la celda
destinada entonces para libreria y archive de esta Custodia,
y por su desesperacion, o que se yo, se chuparon muchos
libros y quemaron cuantos habia de la administracion."
Some of the missionaries, especially the friar stationed at
La Canada, were suffering extreme poverty, while others
were getting comparatively rich by engaging in commercial
activities forbidden to them as members of the Order. The
necessity of avoiding public scandal prevented Dominguez
from dealing with irregularities in an uncompromising
fashion, and this caused him some uneasiness about the
milder course of action he was forced to take. To add to
his difficulties, he had to defend himself against the com-
plaints made by some of the discontented friars, who
attempted to stir up trouble for him in various quarters.
He was also deeply shocked to find how little progress
had been made in civilizing the Indians after so many years
of Christian teaching. To use his own words:
"Even at the end of so many years since their recon-
quest, the specious title or name of neophytes is still applied
to them. This is the reason why their condition now is
almost the same as it was in the beginning, for generally
speaking they have preserved some very indecent, and
perhaps superstitious, customs. . . .
"Most of them do not know their saints' names and
those who know them do not use them, and when we call
them by their saints' names they usually have their joke
10. This may mean that they used the paper to make cigarettes.
142 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
among themselves, repeating the saint's name to each other
as if in ridicule. . . .
"Their repugnance and resistance to most Christian
acts is evident, for they perform the duties pertaining to
the Church under compulsion, and there are usually many
omissions. They are not in the habit of praying or crossing
themselves when they rise or go to bed, and consequently
they have no devotion for certain saints as is customary
among us. And if they sometimes invoke God and His saints
or pray or pay for masses, it is in a confused manner. . . .
"They do not confess annually. If the fathers find
some who know how to make a proper confession, and these
are few, there is rarely anyone capable of receiving com-
munion. When in danger of death they do indeed confess,
most of them through an interpreter, since out of all the
pueblos only those of Isleta, Nambe, San Juan, and Abiquiu
(except at Abiquiu the interpreters are Spanish) do not
make use of one, with very rare exceptions, for the fathers
find it necessary for clearer explanation.
"They are exceedingly fond of pretty reliquaries,
medals, crosses, and rosaries, but this does not arise from
Christian devoutness (except in a few cases) but from love
of ornament. And these objects are always kept for special
occasions, and only when the friars admonish them for not
wearing them all the time do they wear them until that
little scolding has been forgotten. Then they put them away
again until another reproof, and so it goes. . . ."
After a description of the personal habits of the Indians,
Dominguez goes on to discuss the use of the estufas and
then the various dances. He divides the latter into two
groups: those resembling the contredanse or minuets as
danced in Spain, and the "bailes de cabellera." He consid-
ered the first a fairly harmless social dance, but was strongly
opposed to the second.
"The fathers have been very zealous in their opposition
to this "baile de cabellera," but they have only received
rebuffs, and so the fathers are unable to abolish this custom
and many others, because excuses are immediately made on
the ground that [the Indians] are neophytes, minors, etc.
TWO COLONIAL NEW MEXICO LIBRARIES 143
"Under such pretexts they will always be neophytes
and minors with the result that our Holy Faith will not
take root and their malice will increase. May God our Lord
destroy these pretexts so completely that these wretches
may become old Catholics and the greatest saints of the
Church. . . ."
In spite of his feeling at this time, Dominguez appar-
ently spent most of the next twenty years laboring in the
frontier missions. On May 1, 1795, he wrote from Janos to
the Provincial, Fray Francisco de Cruzealegui,11 asking
him to use his influence at the Chapter meeting of 1796 to
obtain for him the title of definidor. He stated that he had
been serving for twenty years as a missionary in New
Mexico and as chaplain in presidios of Nueva Vizcaya and
that he had documents to prove his merits and services.
Although the report made by Dominguez in 1777 is
rather clumsily organized, it is very detailed and conscien-
tious. After a short general statement about New Mexico,
each mission is described separately, beginning with that
of Santa Fe. In each case there is a careful description of
the church, convent, and any other religious edifice, with
inventories of their furnishings, equipment, and supplies,
statements of income and expenses, services rendered by
the Indians, calendar of feasts, and notes concerning the
history and organization of the cofradias, etc. He also
includes data about the location of the pueblos, the physical
characteristics and products of the land, the language and
customs of the inhabitants, and the number of families
living in the mission pueblo and the surrounding area. He
gives the name, age, birthplace, and years in the Order of
the friars in residence at the time of his visita (most of
them were natives of New Spain), and a short summary of
their careers as missionaries.
This information is followed by an account of the
administration of the mission, which varied little through-
out the province. Mass was said on Sundays and feast
days, after which the congregation often recited the Chris-
11. Museo Nacional, Mexico, Asuntos 238.
144 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
tian doctrine. In addition, the young unmarried people
were summoned to recite the doctrine every morning, and
sometimes in the afternoon as well. On these occasions
the father devoted more or less time to expounding various
points. This seems to have been the extent of the instruction
given to the Indians. The obstacles in the way of further
teaching were great, for in many pueblos the Indians either
did not speak Spanish at all, or spoke little and understood
less. Moreover, as Dominguez' general statement about
the Indians, quoted above, shows, they had little real interest
in matters pertaining to the Faith. The results obtained
depended largely on the ability and energy of the friar in
charge. It is interesting to note that Father Dominguez
was very favorably impressed by the regime at Jemez under
Fray Joaquin Ruiz. Here certain of the choirboys were
taught to speak Spanish well and also to read, in order
that they might serve as teachers and interpreters for the
other Indians.
"The system here is different, for one of the little
choirboys . . . takes the catechism and with it in his hand
recites the doctrine with the others. In addition, he (Ruiz)
persuades many married people, who do not know it and
are very backward in it, to come to recite the doctrine,
although this requires repeated efforts."
In his auto de vlsita Dominguez warmly expressed his
thanks to Father Ruiz for the good order he had found at
the mission.
"His Reverence was most gratified and pleased to see
the little teachers of the doctrine so learned and well
instructed in Christian doctrine, reading, singing, and the
manner of assisting at mass, as well as [to observe] their
decorum and modesty, for they resemble novices. For all
this he gave many thanks to God and charged Father Ruiz
to persevere and to continue the fine regime which he has
observed up to now."
In fact he was so impressed by the good friar's methods,
which he considered those best suited to the spiritual direc-
tion and instruction of the Indians, that he gave strict
orders that Ruiz' successors should follow them. In order
TWO COLONIAL NEW MEXICO LIBRARIES 145
that there might be no excuse, he ordered Father Ruiz to
write a detailed account and post it in the convent. This
case is unique, for in general Dominguez had a low opinion
of the instruction given to the Indians.
Only one other school is mentioned in the report. This
was a "muy corta escuela de ninos," presumably for Spanish
children, conducted by the father at the villa of La Canada.
In return the parents of the children made a small annual
payment in kind for the maintenance of the priest. Unfor-
tunately this school was already disintegrating because of
the mortal illness of the minister.
At the end of the Appendix to this article there is a list
of the books found at each mission as shown in the inven-
tories of the sacristies and convents included in Dominguez'
report. The number is very small indeed, and, except at Santo
Domingo, represents only the essential items for the celebra-
tion of the divine offices. Since Dominguez exercised ex-
treme care in recording everything belonging to the missions,
we must assume that if there were any other books at the
missions, they must have been the property of the friar in
charge or borrowed from the library of the Custody. Prob-
ably they had their own breviaries. Acoma is the only
place where a bookcase is listed among the convent furnish-
ings. The scarcity of books at the missions seem significant
in relation to the small amount of formal instruction given
to the Indians.
The library and archive of the Custody were kept at
the convent of Santo Domingo. The books belonging to the
convent itself, including some left behind or donated by
various friars, are mentioned in the section of the report
which concerns that mission. The catalogues of the library
and archive of the Custody are appended at the end of the
report. It is not clear whether the prisoners in 1764, already
referred to, destroyed any of the library or whether they
confined their mischief to the mission records. It will be
noted that many of the books were in bad shape when
Dominguez saw them.
The catalogue of the library as it existed in 1776 shows
two hundred and fifty-six items, including a number of
146 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
duplicates. The actual number of volumes, including- sets
and duplicate copies listed under a single heading, is some-
what larger. Up to the time of Dominguez' visitation it
had apparently been the custom for the friars to borrow
books from the collections at the Santo Domingo convent
without formality. Certain titles were missing from the
convent library, and Dominguez therefore issued an order
to the resident missionary and his successors not to allow
any friar to take books from the mission without leaving
a signed memorandum.
We have no information as to how the books were
accumulated. Some may have been donated by friars and
laymen of the province. Probably a larger number was
supplied by the Order. The Crown evidently provided
liturgical books and other things in special cases, for in a
few items it is specifically stated that the articles are "del
Key."
There are very few works of non-religious character.
Virgil (267) and Ovid (276) are the only Latin classics
mentioned by name. Two Greek grammars (208) are
listed, as well as Nebrija's dictionary (41) and a few other
items of this nature (256, 278, 279). The laws and history
of the Indies are represented by Solorzano Pereira (50) and
Solis (105). Jimenez' translation of Hernandez' important
work, Naturaleza y virtudes de las plantas (197) is the
only medical publication. Finally, there was a copy of
Philip Cluver's geography (264) .
The largest group of writings are of devotional char-
acter and include a large and varied assortment of sermons,
prayers, etc., a few lives of saints and religious, and some
of the works of the Spanish mystics. Then come the
theological treatises of various kinds, among which the
scholastics are well represented. The collection is rather
weak as far as canon law is concerned. The Decretals
(157), the Council of Trent (131, 281), and the Mexican
Councils (70) are listed, but Fray Manuel Rodriguez (84,
129, 130, 141) , whose works had long enjoyed great popular-
ity in New Spain, is one of the few outstanding canonists
mentioned. On the other hand, the history and regulations
TWO COLONIAL NEW MEXICO LIBRARIES 147
of the Franciscan Order seem to be fairly well covered.
The Custody also possessed a number of Bibles and exeget-
ical writings. In addition to the liturgical books in use
at the missions, the library of the Custody had quite a few.
Because of the insufficient data given in the catalogue,
it is impossible to determine the exact number of American
imprints. In some cases where it is possible to identify
author and title, we have no way of knowing whether an
American or European edition is referred to. Although
most of the books must have been imported from Spain,
between twenty and thirty at least are almost certainly
of American origin. These fall into several categories and
include some of the most famous products of the Mexican
press.
Among the first books published in Mexico were gram-
mars and vocabularies of the Indian languages, especially
Nahuatl. These, together with a number of doctrinas,
catechisms, and devotional works in Indian languages, were
written to aid the clergy in their great task of converting
and teaching the natives. The Custodial library at Santo
Domingo lists a vocabulary (64) and three grammars (110).
Other items of this nature are the Dominican Fray Martin
de Leon's Camino del cielo en lengua mexicana (111) , which
had wide circulation, and two volumes of sermons in Mex-
ican (179). The Franciscan Fray Juan Bautista's Adver-
tencias para los confesores de indios (232) was composed
for the same general purpose.
At least four of the liturgical books in the library of
the Custody were published in Mexico. These are the
manuals of Palafox (161), Contreras (243), and Serra
(140) , and the Ceremonial (271) of the Franciscan province
of the Holy Gospel. The manuals in use at the mission
pueblos (Vetancurt and Osorio) were also of Mexican
origin.
The author who appears most frequently is Fray
Clemente de Ledesma (96, 112, 123, 146, 227, 228, 238, 239).
Ledesma was a prominent Mexican Franciscan of the late
seventeenth century who wrote many religious books of
148 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
various kinds. He served as Provincial of the province of
the Holy Gospel during 1694-1696.12
Devotional works published in Mexico include Barcia's
Epistola exhortatoria (147), Munoz de Castro's Exaltation
de la Betlemitica Rosa (162), Diego Lopez de Andrade's
"tomo quaresmal" (289), and the fine sermons of the Jesuit
Juan Martinez de la Parra (200), who was a native of
Puebla. There are many editions of the Luz de Verdades,
which was printed in Spain after the first edition appeared
in Mexico in 1691-1692.
Other Mexican imprints listed are Hernandez* Natural-
eza y virtudes de las plantas (197), works by Fray Antonio
Escoto (265), Borda (274), Velasco (226), and Larraga
(221), the "Chronica de Dieguinos" (40), and the Contilio
Mexicano (70). The life of Father Margil (320), listed as
missing from the convent library at Santo Domingo, was
also probably a Mexican publication. The dates of the
first editions of these American books range from the early
days of the Mexican press to the 1760's.
Although the library of the Custody seems a rather
haphazard collection in some ways, very weak in certain
fields, it covers a wide range of religious thought. Presum-
ably it was reasonably adequate for the needs of the friars
it served.
12. Fray Francisco Antonio de la Rosa Figueroa, Becerro General, MS. in
Ncwberry Library, Chicago.
TWO COLONIAL NEW MEXICO LIBRARIES 149
APPENDIX
i
Ano de 1704. Ymbentario de los vienes que se hallaron del senor
Marques de la Naba de Brazinas ya difunto gouernador y capitan
General que fue deste Reino de la nueua mexico: los quale*
reziuio el thenyente General Juan Paez hurtado como su albazea
y testamentario y thenedor de vienes que por clausula de testa-
mento dejo dicho senor marques.
(1) Mas un libro biejo yntitulado nobiliario genealoxico de los
Reyes y titulos de Espaiia. [Alonso Lopez de Haro, Nobiliario
genealogico de los reyes y titulos de Espana, Madrid, 1622, 2
vols.]
(2) Mas otro libro biejo flor santorum de Villegas. [Alonso de
Villegas, Flos Sanctorum. The Primera Parte del Flos
Sanctorum of Villegas was first published in Toledo, 1578.
Four to six parts were published and appeared in a number
of editions.]
(3) Mas otro libro biejo segunda parte de las leyes del Reino.
[Cf. no. 22, infra.]
(4) Mas otro libro biejo segunda parte del nobiliario genealoxico de
los Reyes y titulos de Espana. [See no. 1, supra.]
(5) Mas otro libro biejo sin principio Ystoria de Carlos Quinto.
[Possibly Prudencio de Sandoval, Historia de la vida y hechos
del emperador Carlos V, Valladolid, 1604-1606, 2 vols., and
later editions; or Pedro de Salazar, Historia y primera parte
de la guerra que don Carlos Quinto, emperador de los romanos,
rey de Espana y Alemania, movio contra los principes y
ciudades rebeldes del reino de Alemania, y sucesos que tuvo,
Naples, 1548, Seville, 1552.]
(6) Mas otro libro biejo ylustraciones genealoxicas de los catolicos
Reyes de las espanas. [Esteban de Garibay y Zamalloa,
Ilustraciones Genealogicas de los Catholicos Reyes de las
Espanas y de los Cfiristianissimos de Francia y de los Empera-
dores de Constantinopla, Madrid, 1596.]
(7) Mas otro libro ibea (sic) prinsipe politico xptiano represen-
tadas en cien empresas. [Diego Saavedra Fajardo, Idea de
un principe politico cristiano representada en 100 empresas,
Minister, 1640, Munich, 1640.]
(8) Mas otro libro biejo y quemadas como veinte ojas en medio
de marco aurelio. [This may refer to Fray Antonio de
Guevara's famous work, Libro Aureo del Emperador Marco
Aurelio con el Relox de Principes, Valladolid, 1529, and many
later editions.]
(9) Mas otro libro intitulado itinerario para parocos de Yndios.
150 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
[Alonso de la Pena Rivas y Montenegro, Itinerario para
pdrrocos de indios, Madrid, 1668, and later editions.]
(10) Mas otro libro biejo intitulado varones Ylustres del nuebo
mundo. [Fernando Pizarro y Orellana, Varones ilustres del
Nuevo Mundo, descubridores, conquistadores y pacificadores
del opulento, dilatado y poderoso Imperio de las Indias
Occident ales : sus vidas, virtud, valor, hazanas y Claros
Blasones, Ilustrados en los Sucesos de estas Vidas, Madrid,
1639.]
(11) Mas otro libro yntitulado grandezas de Madrid. [Gil Gonzalez
Davila, Teatro de las grandezas de la villa de Madrid, Madrid,
1623.]
(12) Mas otro libro apolillado biejo intitulado teatro ecclesiastic©
de la primitiva Yglesia. [Gil Gonzalez Davila, Teatro
eclesidstico de la primitiva iglesia de las Indias Occidentals,
Madrid, 1649-1655, 2 vols.]
(13) Mas otro libro intitulado origen de las dignidades seglares
de Castilla y leon. [Pedro Salazar de Mendoza, Origen de las
dignidades seglares de Castilla y Leon, con relacion sumaria
de los Reyes de estos Reynos, de sus actiones, casamientos,
hijos, muertes, sepulturas de los que las han creado y de
muchos Ricos Homes confirmadores de privilegios, etc., Toledo,
1618, and later editions.]
(14) Mas otro libro intitulado menospresio de corte y alabansa de
aldea. [Antonio de Guevara, Menosprecio de Corte y Alabanza
de la Aldea, Valladolid, 1539, and later editions.]
(15) Mas otro libro intitulado discursos de la nobleza de espafia.
[Bernabe Moreno de Vargas, Discursos de la nobleza de
Espana, Madrid, 1622.]
(16) Mas otro libro intitulado tesoro militar de caualleria. [Jose
Micheli y Marquez, Tesoro militar de cavalleria antiguo y
moderno, modo de armar cavalier os y profesar, segun las
ceremonias de qualquier Orden militar . . . , Madrid, 1642.]
(17) Mas quatro tomos de la nueba Recopilasion. \Nueva recopila-
cion, Alcala, 1567.]
(18) Mas otro libro biejo intitulado istoria de Don Phelipe quarto
Rey de las Espanas. [Gonzalo de Cespedes y Meneses,
Historia de D. Felipe IV, Rey de las Espanas, Lisbon, 1631,
Barcelona, 1634.]
(19) Mas otro libro intitulado politica Yndiana. [Juan de Solorzano
Pereira, Politica Indiana, Madrid, 1648.]
(20) Mas otro libro intitulado coronica de la Prouinsia de Soria.
[Not identified.]
(21) Mas otro libro intitulado primera y segunda parte de la
Curia Phelipica. [Juan Hevia Bolanos, Curia philipica,
Lima, 1603, Valladolid, 1605, and later editions.]
(22) Mas otro libro biejo intitulado Recopilazion de las Leyes
TWO COLONIAL NEW MEXICO LIBRARIES 151
destos Reynos por D. Phelipe segundo nuestro senor.
[Recopilacion de las leyes destos reynos hecho por mandado
. . . del Rey don Philippe segundo, Alcala de Henares, 1569,
and later editions.]
(23) Mas un libro intitulado arte de cosina. [Possibly Francisco
Martins Coutinho (Martinez Montino), Arte de cocina,
pasteleria, bizcocheria y conserveria, Madrid, 1611, and later
editions. The book appears on the lists of various colonial
booksellers of Mexico. Martins Coutinho, a Portuguese, was
Philip IPs cook. He also wrote poetry.]
(24) Mas otro libro intitulado el deuoto peregrine y viage de tier r a
santa. [Fray Antonio del Castillo, El Devoto peregrino y
viage de tierra santa, Madrid, 1654, and later editions.]
(25) Mas otro libro intitulado politica yndiana. [See no. 19, supra.'}
(26) Mas tres tomos de la Madre Maria de Jesus de agreda. [Sor
Maria Jesus de Agreda (Maria Fernandez Coronel y Arana),
Mistica Ciudad de Dios . . . , Madrid, 1670, 3 vols., and
later editions.]
(27) Mas otro libro intitulado milisia y descripsion de las Yndias.
[Bernardo de Vargas Machuca, Milicia y descripcion de las
Indias, Madrid, 1599.]
(28) Mas otro libro intitulado vida de Gregorio Lopez. [Francisco
de Loza, La Vida que hizo el Siervo de Dios Gregorio Lopez
en algunos lugares de esta Nueva Espana, Mexico, 1613, and
later editions.]
(29) Mas otro libro intitulado solo Madrid es corte. [Alonso Nunez
de Castro, Solo Madrid es corte, Madrid, 1658, and later
editions.]
(30) Mas tres libros pequenos yntitulados flor ystorico. [Not
identified.]
(31) Mas otro libro intitulado Regla de las zinco ordenes de
arquitectura. [Probably Regla de las cinco ordenes de
Arquitectura de Vignola, Rome, 1583, Madrid, 1593.]
(32) Mas un librito intitulado Lus del alma. [Fray Ambrosio Roca
de la Serna, Luz del Alma, Valencia, 1634.]
(33) Mas otro librito intitulado combate espiritual. [Not identified.]
152 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
II
The Library of the Custody of St. Paul, 1776
Insercion
En la relacion de la Mission de N. P. S. Domingo, al pie del
auto de visita, bajo del rotulo: addition dije, hallarse en ella una
caja con cosas del Soberano para las Missiones de Nabajo, libreria,
y archive de esta Custodia. De lo que contiene la caja me parece
ocioso el detenerme en referirlo, pues en prueba de que se cuida,
estan las firmas de los Prelados confesando lo que ai y assi paso
a lo demas, que esta sin curiosidad, en orden de juegos.
Libreria
En folio
(34) Quatro tomos de Teologia moral por Villalobos. [Fray
Enrique de Villalobos, Summa de la Theologia Mvral y
canonica, Salamanca, 1622, and later editions.]
(35) Ortus Pastores: no se ve autor. [Not identified.]
(36) Questiones de Escoto contra Lombardo. [John Duns Scotus.]
(37) Dos Panegiricos de Maria Santisima por Fr. Martin Castillo.
[Fray Martin del Castillo,1 Commentaria in Debboram et
Jahelem: sive Panegiricus de S. S. Maria, Domina nostra,
in illis Veteris Testamenti heroicis et celebratissimis Faeminis
adumbrata, Seville, 1678, and later editions.]
(38) Discursos morales por Almonaci. [Jose de Almonacid, Dis-
cursos para los domingos y ferias principales de la Quaresma,
Madrid. 1676.]
(39) Practica de curas y confesores por el P. Noidens: en dos
tomos. [Benito Remigio Noydens, Practica de curas y con-
fesores y doctrina para penitentes, Madrid, 1658, and later
editions.]
(40) Chronica de Dieguinos. [Possibly Fray Baltaser de Medina,
Chronica de la Santa Provincia de San Diego de Mexico de
Religiosos Descalcos de N. S. P. S. Francisco, Mexico, 1682.]
(41) Bocabulario de Nebrija. [Antonio de Nebrija, Dictioniarum
latino-hispanicum, Salamanca, 1492.]
(42) Un expossitivo: sin principio ni fin.
(43) Logica de Rodrigues. [Not identified.]
(44) Propugnacion de verdades catolicas por Torrecilla. [Probably
a work of Fray Martin Torrecilla of the Carmelite Order.
Cf. nos. 51, 114, and 120, infra.'}
1. Fray Martin del Castillo, who was born in Burgos early in the seventeenth
century, had a brilliant career in the Franciscan Order in Mexico, serving as
Provincial of the province of the Holy Gospel, rector of the college of San Buena-
ventura, consultor of the Holy Office, and procurator general in Madrid of all the
provinces of the Indies. He was a learned and prolific author. See also nos. 208 and 251.
TWO COLONIAL NEW MEXICO LIBRARIES 153
(45) Cases de conciencia por Filguera. [Manuel Ambrosio Filguera,
Summa de casos de conciencia que se disputan en la Teologia
Moral, Madrid, 1667.]
(46) Meditaciones de la vida oculta de Christo por Salmeron.
[Fray Marcos Salmeron, El principe escondido, Meditaciones
de la Vida oculta de Christo, Madrid, 1648.]
(47) Obras del P. Ministro Juan de Avila. [Juan de Avila, Obras,
Madrid, 1588, and later editions.]
(48) Otro expositivo: sin principio, ni fin.
(49) Dos tomos de Chronologia de N. P. San Francisco.
(50) Solorsano, govierno de Yndias: estar desquadernado. [Juan de
Solorzano Pereira, Disputationes de indiarum iure, sive de
iusta Indiarum Occidentalium inquisitione, acquisitione et
retentione, Madrid, 1629. Cf. no. 19, supra.']
(51) Consultas Apologicas de Torrecilla. [Fray Martin Torrecilla.]
(52) Quarta, quinta &a partes asta la oncena morales de Diana.
[Antonio Diana, Resolutionum moralium pars prima et
secunda, Palermo, 1629. Ten more parts were published 1636-
1656. There are many editions of the twelve parts.]
(53) Monumentos antiguos seraficos acerca de la Virgen: en dos
tomos por Astorga. [Fray Pedro de Alva y Astorga, O. F. M.,
who wrote many works concerning the Virgin.]
(54) Secunda parte de la suma de S. Tomas. [St. Thomas Aquinas,
Summa Theological
(55) Un tomo de Teologia escolastica: sin principio, ni fin.
(56) Una Biblia: sin principio, ni fin.
(57) Logica de Soto. [Fray Domingo de Soto.]
(58) Un tomo de Teologia por MaceoV>. [Probably a work of the
seventeenth century Portuguese theologian, Fray Francisco
de San Agustin Macedo.]
(59) Segundo tomo moral de Bonacina. [Probably the Italian
theologian, Martin Bonacina, d. 1631.]
(60) Segunda y tercera parte del moral de Gorella. [Fray Jaime
de Corella, Suma de la Theologia moral, Barcelona, 1690, and
later editions.]
(61) Dos tomos de teologia: sin principio.
(62) Constituciones de nuestro orden por Fr. Gabriel Adongo.
(63) Tercera parte de la suma de San Tomas. [See no. 54, supra.']
(64) Bocabulario Mexicano.
(65) Segunda parte de los comentarios por Baesa en los Evangelios.
[Diego de Baeza, Commentariorum moralium in Evangelicam
Historiam, 1624-1627, 4 vols.]
(66) Quatro comentarios de Poncio en la Teologia de Escoto. [Juan
Poncio, Comentarii Teologici, in quibus Subtilis Doctoris
Quaestiones in libros Sententiarum elucidantur, Paris, 1661.]
(67) Fisica de Soto. [Fray Domingo de Soto, Super octo libros
154 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
Physicorum Aristotelis commentaria, Salamanca, 1555, and
later editions.]
(68) Fisica de Escoto. [John Duns Scotus.]
(69) Varies sermones por el Dr. Delgado. [Possibly Antonio
Delgado Buenrostro, bishop of Puebla de las Angeles, Ser-
mones varios, Seville, 1696.]
(70) Concilio Mexicano. [Probably Francisco Antonio Lorenzana,
Concilios provinciates primero y segundo celebrados en la muy
noble y muy leal ciudad de Mexico en 1555 y 1565, Mexico, 1769 ;
Concilium mexicanum provinciale III celebratum Mexici anno
1585, ibid., 1770.]
(71) Grammatica especulativa de Escoto. [John Duns Scotus.]
(72) Otro expossitivo: sin principio.
(73) Conquistas de Filipinas. [Fray Caspar de San Agustin,
Conquistas de las Islas Philipinas: la temporal, por las armas
del Senor Don Phelipe Segundo el Prudente: y la espiritual,
por los religiosos del Orden de Nuestro Padre San Agustin:
Fundacion, y progresses de su Provincia del Santissimo
Nombre de Jesus, Parte Primera, Madrid, 1698.]
(74) Exercicios quaresmales por Balderrama. [Fray Pedro de
Valderrama, Exercicios espirituales para todos los dias de la
Quaresma, Seville, 1602, and later editions.]
(75) Sesenta y cinco anales de Ubadingo. [Luke Wadding, 0. F. M.,
Annales minorum, 1625-1654, 8 vols.]
(76) Tercer tomo del Dispertador cristiano. [Jose de Barcia y
Zambrana, Despertador Christiano de Sermones Doctrinales,
sobre particulares assumptos, 1678-1684, 5 vols., and many
later editions.]
(77) Los Salmaticenses. [Collegii Salmaticensis FF. Discalceatorum
B. Mariae de Monte Carmeli primitivae observantiae Cursus
theologicus . . . , Salamanca, 1631. There are many editions
of this work, which comprises a complete course in theology
as given in the University of Salamanca during the seven-
teenth and eighteenth centuries.]
(78) Una Biblia.
(79) Segundo tomo de las sentencias de Escoto. [John Duns
Scotus.]
(80) Resoluciones morales de Diana. [See no. 52, supra."]
(81) Un moralista: sin principio, ni fin.
(82) Biblia: sin principio, ni fin.
(83) Historia sagrada de Susana.
(84) Un tomo de questiones regulares, y canonicas. [Fray Manuel
Rodriguez, Quaestiones regulares et canonicae, Salamanca,
1598-1602, 3 vols., and later editions.]
(85) Quarta parte de la Monarquia Ecclesiastica sin principio ni
fin. [Fray Juan de Pineda, Los treinta libros de la Monarquia
Ecclesiastica, Salamanca, 1588, 4 vols., and later editions.]
TWO COLONIAL NEW MEXICO LIBRARIES 155
(86) Otro expossitivo: sin principio, ni fin.
(87) Tres mas: como el dicho.
(88) Fr. Tomas Ubaldense de sacramentos. [Thomae Ubaldenis
Anglici, De sacramentis et sacramentatilo, Salamanca, 1557.]
(89) Dos tomos de la suma de Teologia de S. Tomas. [See nos.
54 and 63 supra.'}
(90) Bocabulario Ecclesiastico: sin fin. [Rodrigo Fernandez de
Santaella (Maese Rodrigo), Vocabularium ecclesiasticum,
Seville, 1499, and later editions.]
(91) Concordancias de la Biblia.
(92) Con trover sias Teologicas: sin principio ni fin.
(93) Marial de Quiros. [Fray Juan de Quiros, Rosario Inmaculado
de la Virgen, Seville, 1650; Marial, o segundo tomo de los
mysterios y glorias de Maria, ibid., 1651.]
(94) Dos tomos moralistas por el P. Tomas Sanch.es, Jesuita.
[Tomas Sanchez, Opus morale in praecepta Decalogi, Madrid,
1613, 2 vols.; or Concilia seu Opuscula moralia, Lyons, 1625,
2 vols.]
(95) Silva racional, y espiritual de los divinos oficios.
(96) Ledesma: moral. [Probably refers to one of the numerous
works of the seventeenth century Mexican Franciscan, Fray
Clemen te de Ledesma. Cf. nos. 112, 123, 146, 227, 228, 238,
239.]
(97) Primera parte del moral de Fr. Manuel Rodrigues. [Fray
Manuel Rodriguez, Obras Morales en Romance, Madrid, 1602,
and later editions.]
(98) Un mistico: sin principio, ni fin.
(99) Conferencias morales por Sintrseenigo (sic). [Not identified.]
(100) Controversias Teologicas por el P. Rada. [Fray Juan de
Rada, Controversiae Theologicae inter S. Thoman et Scotum,
Paris, 1589, and later editions.]
(101) Historia de Ester por el P. Bolanos. [Juan de Bolanps, In
sacram Esther historiam Commentarius . . . , Seville, 1701.]
(102) Tiara simbolica de S. Pio quinto.
(103) Otro dispertador cristiano. [See no. 76, supra.]
(104) Un tomo de Sanctoral serafico.
(105) Solis de Yndias. [Probably Antonio de Solis y Rivadeneyra,
Historia de la conquista de Mexico, poblacion y progressos
de la America septentrional, conocida por el nombre de Nueva
Espana, Madrid, 1684, and later editions.]
(106) Seis expossitivos de Salmeron. [Possibly P. Alfonso Salmeron,
S. J. (1515-1585), one of the first Spanish exegetes, author
of sixteen volumes of Scriptural commentaries.]
156 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
En quarto
(107) Vida de Fr. Sebastian de Aparicio: en latin. [Nicolaus
Plumbensis, Opusculum vitae Ven. servi Dei Fr. Sebastiani
ab Apparitio, Rome 1696.]
(108) Discursos predicables por el P. Rota.
(109) Tesoro de la doctrina por Furlot.
(110) Tres artes de lengua Mexicana.
(111) Camino del cielo: en Mexicano. [Martin de Leon, Camino
del cielo en lengua mexicana, Mexico, 1611.]
(112) Quatros tomos morales de Ledesma. [See no. 96, supra*]
(113) Un moral de Fr. Anselmo Gomes. [Anselmo Gomez, Tesoro
de la sciencia moral, y suplemento de las sumas mas selectas
y modernas, Valladolid, 1668 (?).]
(114) Siete libros que tratan de los propociciones condenadas por
los Papas. [Cf. no. 120, infra.']
(115) Un libro de Christo, y Maria por Fr. Fernando Peralta.
[Fray Fernando de Peralta Montaiies, Libro de Cristo y
Maria, San Lucar de Barrameda, 1626.]
(116) Echarri: moral. [Fray Francisco Echarri, Directorio Moral,
Valencia, 1770, and later editions.]
(117) Acosta: sermones quaresmales.
(118) Discursos predicables por Pauleti.
(119) Teologia escolastica de Uberto.
(120) Dos tomos de propociciones condenadas por N. P. Innocencio
11. [Fray Martin Torrecilla, Consultas morales y exposicion
de las proposiciones condenadas por los Santos Padres Inocencio
XI y Alexandro VII, Madrid, 1693.]
(121) Exercicios quaresmales.
(122) Sumulas de Moral.
(123) Seis Dispertadores de noticias morales. [Fray Clemente de
Ledesma, Dispertador de Noticias de los santos sacramentos,
Primer tomo, Mexico, 1695; Compendia del Despertador de
noticias de los Santos Sacramentos, Mexico, 1695; Despertador
de Noticias Theologicas 'morales que apuntan y despiertan
las letras del A, B, C, al Cura y al Confesor, Segundo tomo,
Mexico, 1698; Despertador Republicano que por las Letras
del A, B, C, Compendia el Segundo Tomo del Despertador
de Noticias Theologicas, Mexico, 1699; Despertador Republi-
cano que por las letras del A, B, C, Compendia los compendios
del Primer o y Segundo Tomo del Despertador de Noticias
Theologicas, Mexico, 1700.]
(124) Sermones quaresmales.
(125) Meditaciones del amor de Dios. [Possibly Fray Diego de
Estella (Fray Diego de San Cristobal), Meditaciones devotisi-
mas del amor de Dios, Salamanca, 1576, 1578.]
(126) Ceremonial de los Papas.
(127) Un tomo de la scema de Coretla.
TWO COLONIAL NEW MEXICO LIBRARIES 157
(128) Un tomo de la quaresma de Barcia. [Jose de Barcia y
Zambrana, Quaresma de sermones doctrinales, 1686, 3 vol.]
(129) Explicacion de la Crusada. [Fray Manuel Rodriguez, Explica-
tion de la bulla de la Sancta Cruzada, Alcala, 1589, and later
editions.]
(130) Addiciones a essa explicacion. [Fray Manuel Rodriguez,
Adiciones a la explicacion de la Bula de la Cruzada, Sala-
manca, 1598, 1601.]
(131) Concilio Tridentino. [Decrees of the Council of Trent. Many
editions.]
(132) Dos tomos de sermones latinos.
(133) Certamen Mariano de Arbiol. [Fray Antonio Arbiol y Diez,
Certamen Marianum ubi veritas examinatur in splendoribus
Sanctorum et opus mirabile Civitatis Dei, Zaragoza, 1698.]
(134) Doce tomos de varios sermones.
(135) Un tomo de selectos de la escriptura por Pereiro. [Not
identified.]
(136) Dos tomos de discursos morales.
(137) Laurea evangelica. [Fray Angel Manrique, Laurea Evangelica,
Salamanca, 1605, and later editions.]
(138) Fisica de Merinero: dos tomos. [Possibly Fray Juan Merinero,
0. F. M. (1583-1663).]
(139) Cinco tomos predicables por Dias. [Not identified.]
(140) Dos Manuales de Cerra. [Fray Angel, Serra, Manual de
administrar los santos sacramentos a los espanoles y naturales
de esta provincia de los gloriosos Apostoles S. Pedro y S.
Pablo de Mechuacan conforme a la reforma de Paulo V y
Urbano VIII, Mexico, 1681.]
(141) Questiones regulares: dos tomos. [See no. 84, supra.'}
(142) Tesoro de la ciencia moral. [Cf. no. 113, supra."]
(143) Dos tomos de sermones por Niceno. [Fray Diego Niseno,
Hieronymite, (d. 1656), one of the most eloquent preachers
of his time.]
(144) Teologia simbolica.
(145) Recopilacion de los privilegios de los Menores.
(146) Dispertador republicano. [See no. 123, supra."}
(147) Epistola exortatoria de Barcia. [Jose de Barcia, Epistola
exhortatoria, Puebla de los Angeles, 1693.]
(148) Varios oficios de nuestros santos.
(149) Varios mismos de Augustinos.
(150) Diceptacion mistica.
(151) Varios sermones de Guerra. [Possibly Fray Manuel Guerra
y Ribera, Sermones varios de Santos, Madrid, 1677-1680.]
(152) Celo Pastoral.
(153) Flores de questiones Teologicas. [Fray Jose Angles, Flores
Theologicarum quaestionum in libros Sententiarum, Caller,
1575-1576, 2 vols., and later editions.]
158 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
(154) Dos tomos de sermones por Garces. [Possibly Fray Francisco
Garces, O. F. M.]
(155) Varies oficios de Mercedarios.
(156) Casos morales.
(157) Dos tomos Decretales sin principio, ni fin.
(158) Dos Montenegros de Yndios. [Cf. no. 9, supra.]
(159) Tres Bocabularios Ecclesiasticos viejos. [See no. 90, supra.']
(160) Dialogo entre confesor, y penitente.
(161) Manual de D. Juan Palafox. [Juan de Palafox y Mendoza,
Manual de los Santos Sacramentos, conforme al ritual de
Paulo Quinto, Mexico, 1642, and later editions.]
(162) Exaltacion de la Betlemitica Rosa. [Br. Pedro Munoz de
Castro, Exaltacion magnifica de la betlemitica rosa de la
mejor americana Jerico y action gratulatoria por su plantation
dichosa, Mexico, 1697.]
(163) Disputas Teologicas: sin autor.
(164) Dos tomos de platicas por Miranda. [Possibly Fray Luis de
Miranda, Platicas y colaciones espirituales, Salamanca, 1617,
1618. Cf. no. 171, infra.']
(165) Erudicion cristiana. [Fray Jose Luquian, Erudition chris-
tiana, en veinte y cinco discursos devotos muy provechosos
para el alma, Tarragona, 1594.]
(166) Discursos predicables.
(167) Instruccion de Predicadores.
(168) Varios sermones de Cespedes. [Possibly Antonio Cespedes,
Sermones varios, Madrid, 1677.]
(169) Dispertador Cristiano. [See no. 76, supra.]
(170) Abecedario espiritual y ley de amor. [Fray Francisco de
Osuna, Abecedario espiritual. The first part was published in
Seville, 1528, and the entire work consists of six parts of
which there are many editions. The Cuarta parte o Ley de
Amor appeared in 1530.]
(171) Platicas, y colaciones espirituales. [See no. 164, supra.'}
(172) Ano Apostolico.
(173) Un libro de oficios sueltos.
(174) Triunfos de la gracia, y gloria de los Santos.
(175) Un tomo de oraciones Evangelicas.
(176) Apologia de confesores regulares. [The Biblioteca Nacional
de Mexico has the following: Gabriel Novoa, Apologia de
confesores y predicadores regulares. Respuesta a una consulta
en derecho regular, en la que se tratan y detiden todas las
dificultades que suelen ocurir entre los regulares con los
obispos y mas ordinarios en materia de aprobacion y licencias
de confesar y predicar, 2a Imp., Salamanca, 1705.]
(177) Un libro de Teologia sin principio, ni fin.
(178) Lexicon Ecclesiasticum. [Fray Diego Jimenez Arias, Lexicon
TWO COLONIAL NEW MEXICO LIBRARIES 159
ecclesiasticum latino-hispanicum ex sacris Bibliis, Conciliis,
Pontificorum, etc., Salamanca, 1565, and many later editions.]
(179) Dos libros de sermones en Mexicano.
(180) Discursos predicables en latin.
(181) Dos tomos de tentativas Complutensis. [Fray Francisco Felix,
Tentativae Complutensis . . . Duns Scoti mens . . . elucidatur
. . . Angelici Doctoris doctrina sponitur . . . , Alcala, 1642-
1646, 2 vols.]
(182) Un tratado de voto.
(183) Un tomo de ortu, et interitu. [Probably a commentary on
Aristotle.]
(184) Los dos estados de la espiritual Jerusalen. [Fray Juan
Marquez, Los dos estados de la espiritual Hierusalem sobre
los psalmos CXXV y CXXXVI, Medina del Campo, 1603, and
later editions.]
(185) Declaracion de los siete psalmos penitenciales.
(186) Orden Judiciario por Miranda. [Fray Luis de Miranda,
Liber ordinis iudiciarii, Salamanca, 1601.]
(187) Sermones de Segura. [Not identified.]
(188) Conceptos predicables: sin principio, &a.
(189) Panegiricos de Oviedo. [Juan Antonio de Oviedo, Panegyricos
sagrados en honra y alabanza de Dios, de Maria Santissima,
etc., Madrid, 1718.]
(190) Dos Fueros de la conciencia.
(191) Tesoro de confesores. [Dr. Juan Daza y Berrio, Tesoro de
confesores y Perla de la conciencia para todos estados, Madrid,
1648.]
(192) Apologia en defensa de nuestro orden. [Possibly Gabriel de
Guillixtegui, Apologia en defensa de la Orden de Penitencia
de San Francisco, Bilbao, 1643.]
(193) Resumen moral de Machado. [Juan Machado de Chavez y
Mendoza, Suma moral y resumen brevisimo de todas las
obras del doctor Machado, Madrid, 1661.]
(194) Vida de Cristo por Villalobos. [Not identified.]
(195) Una Biblia: sin principio ni fin.
(196) Tratado de anima. [Probably a commentary on Aristotle.]
(197) Naturalesa, y virtudes de las plantas. [Francisco Hernandez,
Cuatro libros de la naturaleza y virtudes de las plantas y
animales que estdn recibidos en le uso de Medicina en la
Nueva Espana, Mexico, 1615. Trans, from Latin by Francisco
Jimenez.]
(198) El superior predicando: sin principio.
(199) Dos tomos de discursos Evangelicos: sin principio.
(200) Un tomo de las platicas del P. Parra. [Probably Juan Martinez
de la Parra, Luz de verdades catolicas y explication de la
doctrina cristiana, que segun la costumbre de la casa profesa
160 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
de la Compania de Jesus, todos los jueves del ano se platica en
su iglesia, Mexico, 1691, 1692, and many later editions.]
(201) Tratados del modo de corregir. [Possibly Gaudentius van
den Kerckhove, Methodus corrigendi regulares, sen praxis
criminalis fratribus minoribus propria, omni regulari judici
accomodata.]
(202) Directoriis decisiones regulariis. [Fray Antonio de Hinojosa,
Directorium decisionum Regularium, Madrid, 1627.]
(203) Un jnoralista: sin principio, ni fin.
(204) Soliloquies de las cosas divinas.
(205) Una Logica.
(206) Dos tomos predicables por Niceno. [See no. 143, supra.]
(207) Tratos, y contratos de mercaderes por un Dominico. [Fray
Tomas de Mercado, Tratos y contratos de mercaderes y tra-
tantes, Salamanca, 1569, and later editions.]
(208) Dos grammaticas de lengua griega. [Possibly Fray Martin
del Castillo, Gramdtica de la lengua griega en Idioma Espanol,
Lyons, 1678.]
(209) Phisica de un Jesuita.
(210) M^oral de Delgadillo. [Fray Cristobal Delgadillo, 0. F. M.]
(211) Apologia de las obras de Tertuliano. [Possibly Fray Pedro
Manero, Apologia de Quinto Septimo Florente Tertuliano,
presbitero de Cartago, contra los gentiles, en defensa de los
cristianos, Zaragoza, 1644, and later editions.]
(212) Delgadillo de Incarnatione. [Fray Cristobal Delgadillo, De
Incarnatione, Alcala, 1653.]
(213) Sermones varies: en latin.
(214) Concilio Tridentino. [See no. 131, supra.]
(215) Una Biblia.
(216) Oraciones Ecclesiasticas.
(217) Questiones morales.
(218) Regla de nuestra religion.
(219) Varios oficios sueltos.
(220) Sermones varios: sin principio.
(221) Veinte, y dos morales de Larraga. [Fray Francisco Larraga,
Promptuario de la Theologia Moral, Puebla de los Angeles,
1766, and later editions.]
(222) Arte Mexicano.
(223) Triunfos Evangelicos.
(224) El tercer tomo de el hi jo de David perseguido. [Dr. Cristobal
Lozano, El Hijo de David mas perseguido, Madrid, 1740, and
later editions.]
(225) Unos discursos morales: sin principio ni fin.
(226) Arte de sermones por Velasco. [Alonso Alberto de Velasco,
Arte de sermones para saber hazerlos y predicarlos, Mexico,
1728.]
(227) Moral de Ledesma. [See no. 96, supra.]
TWO COLONIAL NEW MEXICO LIBRARIES 161
(228) Dispertador moral por el mismo. [See no. 123, supra.]
(229) Segunda parte de la Monarquia mistica. [Lorenzo de Zamora,
Monarquia mistica de la Yglesia, hecha de hieroglyficos,
sacados de humanas y divina letras. Segunda parte, Alcala,
1601, Madrid, 1611.]
En octavo
(230) Dos tomos de sermones por el Granatense. [Fray Luis de
Granada?]
(231) Casos de conciencia por Burgraber.
(232) Quatro tomos de advertencias para confesores de Yndios.
[Fray Juan Bautista, Advertencias para los confesores de los
indios, Mexico, 1599.]
(233) Manual de confesores por Ascargota. [Fray Juan de Ascargota,
Manual de Confesores, Madrid, 1713, and later editions.]
(234) Concideraciones espirituales : en latin. [Fray Juan de los
Angeles, Consider ationum Spiritualium super librum Cantici
Canticorum Salomonis in utraque lingua, Latina et Hispana,
Madrid, 1607.]
(235) Questiones Teologicas.
(236) Dubia regularia por Portel. [The Biblioteca Nacional de
Mexico has the following: Laurentius de Portel, Dubia regu-
laria tarn ad subditos quam ad praelatos, in utroque foro
attinentia, fere per compendium resoluta, Rome, 1712.]
(237) 5 Morales de Escoto. [John Duns Scotus.]
(238) Manual de confesores por Ledesma. [See no. 96, supra."}
(239) Dos dispertadores morales por el mismo. [See no. 123, supra.']
(240) Siete exposissiones de nuestra regla por Fr. Martin de S.
Jose. [Fray Martin de San Jose, Breve exposicion de los
preceptos que la Regla de los Frayles Menores obligan a pecado
mortal, segun la mente de los Sumos pontifices, y de San
Buenaventura, Zaragoza, 1638, and later editions.]
(241) Dos mismos por Navarro. [Fray Pedro Navarro, Exposition
de la regla de Nuestro Padre San Francisco, Madrid, 1636.]
(242) Dos morales de Ascargota. [Fray Juan de Ascargota?]
(243) Manual de Contreras. [Fray Pedro de Contreras Gallardo,
Manual de administrar los Santos Sacramentos a los espanoles
y naturales desta Nueva Espana conforme a la reforma de
Paulo V, Mexico, 1638.]
(244) Declamaciones de la Virgen. [Possibly Fray Luis de Carvajal,
Declamatio expostulatoria pro inmaculata Conceptione Genir
tricis Dei Marie, Paris, 1541.]
(245) Dos manuales de sacredotes por Arbiol. [Fray Antonio Arbiol
y Diez, Manuale sacerdotum Sacris Scrip toris et Sanctorum
Patrum sententiis Illustratum, Barcelona, 1711.]
(246) Examen de confesores por Blanco.
(247) Oraciones latinas: sin principio.
162 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
(248) Dos morales de Salasar. [Possibly Fray Simon de Salazar,
Promptuario de materias morales, Alcala, 1674.]
(249) Otro mismo de Allosa. [Juan de Alloza, Flores summarum
sive alphabetum morale, Lyons, 1665, and later editions.]
(250) Catecismo de S. Pio quinto.
(251) Sermones de S. Pedro Crisologo: sin principio, ni fin. [Prob-
ably Fray Martin del Castillo, Dim Petri Chrysologi Sermones,
Lyons, 1676.]
(252) Moral de Remigio. [Benito Remigio Noydens.]
(253) Declaracion de las Epistolas de S. Pablo.
(254) Tres manuales de confesores por Villalobos. [Fray Enrique
de Villalobos, Manual de Confesores, Salamanca, 1628, Valla-
dolid, 1628, and later editions.]
(255) Tratado de las siete palabras de Christo en la Crus.
(256) Dos explicaciones de la syn taxis.
(257) Tratado del bien estado religioso. [Francisco Rodriguez,
El libro del bien del estado religioso, compuesto en latin por
el P. Hieronymo Plati de la Compania de Jesus, Medina,
1595.]
(258) Dos moralistas latinos: sin principio ni fin.
(259) Compendio de los Concilios.
(260) Dos libritos de las Epistolas de S. Geronimo.
(261) Practica de confesores por Escobar. [Antonio de Escobar y
Mendoza, Examen y prdctica de confesores . . . sacados de
varios doctores, Zaragoza, 1632, and many later editions.]
(262) Itinerario Catolico por Gusman. [Probably Fray Juan Focher,
Itinerarium Catholicum Proficiscentium, ad infideles conver-
tendos, . . . Nuper summa cura et diligentia auctum, expurga-
tum, limatum ac praelo mandatum per fratrem Didacum
Valadesium. . . . Ad Reverendissimum Patrem F. Franciscum
Guzmanum, omnium Indiarum maris Occeani Commissarium
generalem, Seville, 1574.]
(263) Sermones latinos del Granatense. [Cf. no. 230, supra."]
(264) Geografia de Cluberi. [Philip Cluver, Introductio in universam
geographiam tam veterem quam novam, Leyden, 1624, and
many later editions.]
(265) Tratado del confesor solicitante por Fr. Antonio Escoto.
[Fray Antonio Escoto, Scutum Confessionis contra nefarios
Sacordotes in Sacramento Poenitentiae ad turpia provocantes,
Mexico, 1703.]
(266) Suma de las virtudes.
(267) Virgilio.
(268) Versos latinos: sin principio, ni fin.
(269) Epistolas en verso latino: sin principio.
(270) Compendio moral : sin principio.
(271) Ceremonial de la Provincia. [Probably Fray Isidro Alfonso
TWO COLONIAL NEW MEXICO LIBRARIES 163
Castaneira, Manual Summa de las ceremonias de la Provincia
de el Santo Evangelic de Mexico, Mexico, 1702, 1703.]
(272) Sermones de Segura. [Cf. no. 187, supra.']
(273) Sermones feriales de quaresma.
(274) Practica de confesores de Monjas por Borda. [Fray Andres
de Borda, Practica de confesores de monjas, Mexico, 1708.]
(275) Practica de Exorcistas. [Benito Remigio Noydens, Practica
de exorcistas y ministros de la iglesia, Madrid, 1660.]
(276) Ovidio.
(277) Humildad del corason.
(278) Explicacion del arte de Nebrija. [There are many seventeenth
and eighteenth century "explicaciones" of Nebrija.]
(279) Advertencias de la grammatica. [Possibly Bernardino de
Llanos, S. J. (1557-1639), Advertencias de Gramatica, Mexico,
1645.]
(280) Ceremonial Romano. [Possibly Pedro Ruiz Alcolado, Cere-
monial romano, Alcala, 1589; or Fray Juan de Zamora, El
Ceremonial Romano, Burgos, 1603.]
(281) Concilio Tridentino. [See no. 131, supra.'}
(282) Manifiesto chronologico, y satisfatorio.
(283) Instruccion de Presbiteros.
(284) Un tomo suelto de Teologia.
(285) Manual de confesores por Navarro. [Martin Azpilcueta (Dr.
Navarro), Manual de confesores y penitentes, 1552, and many
later editions.]
(286) Sermones de adviento por Castro. [Fray Pedro Nunez de
Castro?]
(287) Tercer tomo de la historia de la alma.
(288) Doce Breviarios viejos.
(289) Un tomo quaresmal por Fr. Diego Lopez Andrade. [Fray
Diego Lopez de Andrade, Tractados sobre los Evangelios de
Quaresma, Madrid, 1615; Segunda parte, Madrid, 1617; and
later editions.]
164 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
III
Books Found at the Missions in 1776
Villa de Santa Fe
[In the church] :
(290) Tres Missales viejos con Santos nuestros.
(291) Un Manual de Osorio servible. [Fray Diego Osorio, Manual
para administrar los Santos Sacramentos arreglado al Ritual
Romano, Mexico, 1748.]
[Capilla de Nuestra Senora de la Luz] :
(2920 Un Missal nuevo con nuestros Santos.
Tesuque
(293) Un Missal viejissimo.
Nambe
(294) Un Missal mui vie jo.
(295) Un Manual de Ossorio. [See no. 291, supra.']
Pujuaque
(296) El Missal es viejissimo y tiene Santos nuestros.
San Ildefonso
(297) Un Missal servible.
(298) Otro mui antiguo.
(299) Dos Breviaries viejos, que con dho Missal y unos papeles con
Introitos, etc. en puntos de solfa sirven a los cantores.
Canada
[In the church] :
(300) Un Missal.
[Capilla del Carmen] :
(301) Antonio Martin . . . dio a esta capilla del Carmen . . . un
missal vie jo.
San Juan
(302) Un Missal servible.
(303) Otro vie jo.
(304) Manual de Ossorio. [See no. 291, supra.~\
[Rio Arriba] :
(305) Missal vie jo.
Picuries
(306) Missal viejo con registros de correas, y aderesado por el P.
Garcia.
(307) Manual de Vetancurt, que dio este mismo P. [Fray Agustin
de Vetancurt, Manual de administrar los santos sacramentos,
con forme a la re forma de Paulo V y Urbano VIII. Sacado
de los Manuales de los Padres Fr. Miguel de Zarate, Fray
Pedro de Contreras, etc., Mexico, 1674, and later editions.]
TWO COLONIAL NEW MEXICO LIBRARIES 165
Taos
(308) Missal viejissimo.
(309) Manual de Ossorio. [See no. 291, supra.]
Santa Clara
(310) Un Missal viejo con registros de correas* que el P. Sambrano
dio siendo Vice-Custodio.
(311) Otro tal mas viejo.
(312) Manual de Ossorio. [See no. 291, supra.']
Abiquiu
(313) Missal servible.
Santo Domingo
[In the church] :
(314) Un Missal nuevo de nuestro orden, que puso el P. Samora.
(315) Dos Manuales de Betancurt mui vicjos. [See no. 307, supra.]
[In the convent] :
(316) Dies y seis libros de varies tamanos y tiempos que tratan
diversas materias por diversos autores, y los han dejado
algunos PP. Estan inventariados, y fuera de ellos faltan
los que dize en el auto de visita.
[Auto de visita] :
Mission de N. P. S. Domingo, y primero de junio de mil
setecientos setenta y seis anos. En prosecucion de la visita
juridica, que de esta Custodia esta haciendo N. R. P. Fr.
Francisco Atanasio Dominguez Predicador del numero en el
convento grande de N. P. S. Francisco de Mexico y Commisario
Visitador de esta Custodia por N. M. R. P. Ministro Provincial
Fr. Isidro Murillo: paso a ver, y vio S. P. R. este Inventario
el que aunque concuerda con lo existente, y que pertenece a
Iglesia y sacristia; por lo que toca al convento se ochan menos
los libros:
(317) Quaresma de Niceno. [Fray Diego Niseno.]
(318) Oraciones Evangelicas de Fr. Diego Malo. [Fray Diego Malo
de Andueza, Oraciones Evangelicas y Ferias principales de
Quaresma, Madrid, 1661-1664.]
(319) Manojito de Flores.
(320) Vida del P. Margil. [Fray Isidro Felix de Espinosa, El
Peregrino Septentrional Atlanie: delineado en la exemplar-
issima vida del Ven. P. F. Antonio Margil de Jesus, Mexico,
1747; or Fray Hermenegildo Vilaplana, Vida portentosa del
americano septentrional apostol, el V. P. Fray Antonio Margil
de Jesus, Mexico, 1763.]
Por lo que se ordena y manda al P. Missionero actual Fr.
Mariano Rodriguez de la Torre, o al que en lo de adelante
fuere, que jamas permita, que religiose alguno saque libros
de la Mission o de la libreria de la Custodia que aqui se
166 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
mantiene, sin que primer o le deje por escritto, y firmado los
libros, que llevare, para assi saber de ellos, y cobrarlos. . . .
Sandia
(321) Un Missal con Santos nuestros, que dio el Rey.
(322) Otro viejissimo.
(323) Manual de Ossorio. [See no. 291, supra.]
Albuquerque
(324) Un Missal bueno.
(325) Otros dos viejos.
(326) Manual de Vetancurt. [See no. 307, supra.]
[Capilla de N. S. de la Concepcion, Alameda] :
(327) Missal usado.
(328) Manual.
[Tome] :
(329) Missal viejo.
Oochiti
(330) Un Missal tratado, y sus registros de correas.
(331) Manual de Ossorio servible. [See no. 291, supra.]
San Felipe
(332) Un Missal viejo.
Santa Ana
(333) Un Missal bien tratado.
(334) Manual de Ossorio tratado. [See no. 291, supra.]
(335) El mismo de Vetancurt. [See no. 307, supra.]
Sia
(336) Dos Missales viejos.
(337) Manual de Ossorio tratado. [See no. 291, supra.]
(338) Dos viejos de Vetancurt. [See no. 307, supra.]
Gemes
(339) Un Missal viejissimo y no tiene Santos nuestros.
(340) Dos mismos, medios, y desquadernados, de los Nabajoes.2
(341) Manual de Ossorio. [See no. 291, supra.]
Laguna
(342) Un Missal rasonable.
(343) Otro viejo.
(344) Manual de Ossorio. [See no. 291, supra.]
2. Father Menchero had brought various articles donated by the Crown for use
in the Navajo missions. Some of these were in use at Sandia, others were stored at
Santo Domingo, and these two missals may have come from the same source.
TWO COLONIAL NEW MEXICO LIBRARIES 167
Acoma
(346) Un Missal servible, de clerigos.
(346) Otro mui viejo.
(347) Manual de Ossorio. [See no. 291, supra.'}
Zuni
(348) Missal viejo.
(349) Manual de Ossorio tratado. [See no. 291, supra,.']
Isleta
(350) Dos Missales viejos.
(351) Manual de Ossorio. [See no. 291, supra.'}
Pecos
(352) Missal servible.
(353) Tres Manuales viejos de Vetancurt. [See no. 307, supra.'}
(354) Otro de Ossorio, al que las ratones tienen bien conjurado con
sus dientes. [See no. 291, supra.]
Galisteo
(355) Missal servible.
(356) Manual de Vetancurt, viejo. [See no. 307, supra."}
NEW MEXICO'S CONSTITUTION IN THE MAKING-
REMINISCENCES OF 19101
By THOMAS J. MABRY
THE FIRST effort on the part of the people of New Mexico
to secure admission into the Union through the formal
method of writing- and submitting a constitution was made in
1850. A meeting of representative citizens was held in
Santa Fe on April 20th of that year, resolutions seeking ad-
mission of the state were adopted, and Col. Monroe, then
military governor, was requested to issue a proclamation
calling delegates to a constitutional convention. In pursu-
ance of such call, a regular constitutional convention was
held, the opening session being on May 15th. James H. Quinn
was elected president. The convention sat for 10 days. The
most controversial matter was that involving slavery for the
new state, against which the document contained a clear and
ringing declaration. This document was submitted to con-
gress, but statehood was declined largely because of this
anti-slavery declaration, we are told. A bitter debate was
then raging in congress on the slavery question. The South-
ern representation at that time was anxious that any new
state then to come in should be one to balance against Cali-
fornia's anti-slavery attitude.
Historians tell us that, had New Mexico declared for
slavery at that time, it might have been admitted to the
Union. As indicative of the temper of the people in favor
of statehood, the overwhelming vote of 8,371 in approval
of the constitution as compared with only 39 negative votes,
should be noticed. Somebody suggested that this reflected
smooth election machinery rather than unanimity of opin-
ion— but we will skip that.
The next effort came with the convention which met in
Santa Fe in 1889, this time authorized by the territorial leg-
islature. This effort also brought no results, excepting to
again impress upon congress our ardent desire for state-
1. Address by Supreme Court Justice Thomas J. Mabry at the annual meeting:
of the State Bar of New Mexico in Santa Fe, October 22-23, 1943.
168
NEW MEXICO'S CONSTITUTION IN THE MAKING 169
hood. There were 74 delegates elected to this convention,
among whom were five who subsequently served in the au-
thorized convention of 1910 through which statehood was
finally obtained. These delegates serving in both conven-
tions were: E. S. Stover and Alejandro Sandoval of Albu-
querque; G. W. Prichard of Santa F£; John G. Clancy of
Puerto de Luna, and Silvestre Mirabal of Valencia county.
The people of New Mexico likewise adopted this consti-
tution, submitted, together with a stirring address prepared
by what was called a "committee of the constitutional con-
vention" of which Hon. J. Francisco Chavez was the chair-
man. The theory upon which the people of New Mexico was
approaching the question at this time was, as we gather
from the words of this committee, that "God helps only them
who help themselves and the time has come for New Mexi-
cans to stand up, insist ^n, demand your rights!" In this
address it is pointed out that New Mexico, as a territory,
has furnished a place of forage for politicians who couldn't
be either supported or elected to any office in their home
states; that "a delegate to congress is only a paid beggar
licensed to enter its halls. To him little more respect is paid
than to the ordinary mendicant who walks your streets."
The address further pointed out that of 31 states admitted
into the Union since 1789, only three of them at the time of
their admission "possessed more property or wealth than
New Mexico has at present." Needless to say that nothing
was accomplished by this effort, and New Mexico remained
a territory.
Then a convention was called in 1910 to write the con-
stitution for the proposed new state. This was to be first
submitted to the people, then to congress and the president
for approval. This time New Mexico acted under authority
of an act of congress known as The Enabling Act. Under
this act the chief justice of the supreme court, the governor
of the Territory and the secretary of the Territory were se-
lected to apportion the 100 delegates which the act provided
should meet at Santa Fe and formulate the constitution.
This apportionment was soon made. The Territorial gover-
nor, Judge Wm. J. Mills, issued his proclamation calling an
170 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
election for September 6, 1910, for the selection of delegates
for a constitutional convention to open in Santa Fe on Octo-
ber 3, 1910, and which was authorized to sit for not more
than 60 days. Of the 100 delegates to this convention, 71
were republicans and 28 were democrats, and there was one
socialist. Bernalillo, with the largest population, elected
eight delegates while McKinley had only one. The state was
then composed of 26 counties, including the newly created
county of Curry, with which Quay and Roosevelt had to
share their representation. The democrats, usually claim-
ing the distinction of speaking for the common man, were
challenged by this lone socialist, Green B. Patterson of Cha-
vez county, who said no one was closer to the poor man and
the grass roots than he. "I am the only man in this conven-
tion," he boasted, "that came to Santa Fe directly from a
dug-out."
The convention met on October 3, 1910, and adjourned
on November 21, without consuming the entire 60 days al-
lowed, and having left from the $100,000.00 appropriated by
congress for holding the convention something over
$7,000.00. This was later returned by Mr. Nathan Jaffa,
then secretary of the Territory, to the U. S. Treasury. This
perhaps set a precedent in practice of giving back govern-
ment money not theretofore observed in the territory ; nor
thereafter in the state, so far as most of us can recall. The
convention met in the house chamber of the capitol, the old
brass rail being removed and desks were placed almost to
the back wall. The excellent record made by Mr. Jaffa as
the last secretary of the Territory and the courteous and im-
partial treatment shown all delegates of the convention will
long be remembered by those who knew him then. Mr. Jaffa
is still living, I am happy to report, and is in reasonably
good health although now at the age of 79. (Mr. Jaffa was
in the hall and was asked to take a bow.)
The election to approve the constitution was held on
January 21, 1911, after a vigorous and bitter campaign, the
vote being 31,742 in favor of adopting the constitution, with
a negative vote of 13,309. Women did not vote at this time,
NEW MEXICO'S CONSTITUTION IN THE MAKING 171
of course. The constitution carried in all counties but those
of Roosevelt. Lincoln, Sierra and San Juan.
The democratic party, as an organization, was opposed
to the constitution as submitted, and fought its adoption,
particularly on the ground of its conservative character and
of the alleged general conservative form of the referendum
provision and the entire absence of any form of initiative or
recall. But, at a central committee meeting of that party
which was held at Santa Fe soon after the close of the con-
vention in 1910, it was resolved that party loyalty would not
be tested by any man's vote upon the constitution, that all
democrats would be free to vote as "their conscience should
dictate."
The preparation f oV, and opening of, the constitutional
convention at Santa Fe was accompanied by much social and
political activity. That the republican party, overwhelm-
ingly in the majority, would have its own way was apparent
from the first; but the democrats, constituting slightly
more than one-fourth of the convention, made up for its lack
of numbers in oratory and disunity ; and thus stoutly main-
tained the party tradition.
Former Governor and Mrs. L. Bradford Prince, the
popular Judge and Mrs. N. B. Laughlin, and the popular ex-
Governor Miguel A. Otero, and others, took a leading part
in extending social courtesies and doing many of the nice
things which made a few of the early days of the convention
particularly enjoyable, socially; after the first few days,
however, partisan feeling arose to such a high pitch that
most delegates were occupied with other thoughts than those
associated with receptions, dinners and buggy rides about
scenic Santa Fe. There were many social activities there-
after, I remember, but these were confined largely to smoke-
filled hotel rooms of the old Palace Hotel where card tables,
brass spittoons and Old Taylor took the place of lovely, well-
dressed ladies serving tea and cookies. Cocktail parties,
openly conceived and advertised, had not yet come into wide
favor. Mrs. Laughlin, an intense partisan, was a most gra-
cious hostess, and like Mrs. Prince, belonged to the old
school.
172 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
Not to have known Mrs. Mary Prince was to have
missed a lot of life. My acquaintance with her, it is true,
was in the sunset days of her life, but it was a sunset of
bright glow, and color, and hope ; somewhat disturbed, per-
haps, by the thought that the new generation then taking
over was declining to show proper political deference to her
gallant husband, then also advanced in years. She strove
earnestly, cared deeply, for the acclaim of achievement, suc-
cess, blue ribbons, culture, distinction and for political pre-
ferment for her husband.
The document, as finally written, was largely the handi-
work of such able delegates of the majority party as T. B.
Catron, thereafter U. S. senator; Charles A. Spiess, presi-
dent of the convention and an outstanding attorney ; Charles
Springer of Raton, also an able lawyer and representing as
well as possessing, large property interest; H. 0. Bursum,
an able man though not a lawyer, a ceaseless worker and the
party's first candidate for governor; A. B. Fall of Three
Riivers, an able lawyer, then in the prime of life and in his
best fighting condition; Clarence J. Roberts; Frank W.
Parker, and Solomon Luna, of Valencia. Luna never made
a speech in the convention, but it is said, that he needed only
to lift a finger or his eyebrows, to stop any proposal which
he deemed against the best interest of his people, his party,
or the proposed new state. I omit mention of the many
able democrats, since these, after all, were in a hopeless mi-
nority, and, as I have often said, were there to get into the
document what they could, of our program, but whose prin-
cipal function seemed to be to vote "no."
The convention became a rough and tumble political
fight from the day it opened until the day it closed. Some
of the most controversial subjects with which the conven-
tion dealt were: direct legislation (the initiative and refer-
endum), term of office for county and state officials; suc-
cession to office; power to be given to the state corporation
commission; specific manner and method of our selection
and retention of public lands granted by congress ; authoriz-
ing payment of the bonded indebtedness of Santa Fe and
Grant counties, legalized by congress ; the price or term at
NEW MEXICO'S CONSTITUTION IN THE MAKING 173
which public lands might be sold or leased ; the protection of
established water rights ; methods of amending the constitu-
tion; the matter of the creation of legislative and judicial
districts; and the method of selecting the judiciary.
Both parties were united in its purpose to end the per-
nicious and extravagant fee system for county officers. No
party lines were drawn when it came to the much debated
subject of how to select district judges and justices of the
supreme court, whether by election or appointment; and,
likewise, as to their terms of office. A considerable number
of both parties favored and fought for some appointive sys-
tem, but the overwhelming majority in both parties favored
electing all judges, disagreeing only as to the length of term
and the salaries to be paid.
It will be remembered that the constitution left to the
first state legislature the matter of fixing county salaries
for all county officers, and this task brought on what was
perhaps the most prolonged and bitter contest between the
legislative and executive branches of our state government
that has ever been known in New Mexico. The disagree-
ment between the legislature and the governor over the
classification of counties and the fixing of salaries for the
various officials was wholly irreconcilable. Governor Mc-
Donald vetoed the salary bill passed by the first legislature
of 1912, and his veto was sustained by the narrow margin of
one vote in the senate.
It was Delegate H. 0. Bursum who introduced the pro-
vision limiting succession to certain state and county offices
and providing for the abolition of the unsatisfactory and
unpopular fee system employed in the compensation of cer-
tain county officers.
H. B. Fergusson, M. D. Taylor, C. M. Compton, Sr.
(father of our able District Judge J. C. Compton), E. D.
Tittmann, R. W. Heflin and J. W. Childers, to mention those
names that now occur to me, represented the so-called ir-
reconcilables among the minority in the convention, who
would be satisfied with nothing less than a thoroughly pro-
gressive constitution ; while C. R. Brice, G. A. Rdchardson,
A. H. Hudspeth, J. L. Lawson and H. W. Daugherty would
174 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
probably be classified with the ablest of that portion of the
minority which was endeavoring, through compromise and
agreement, to get into the organic law as much of the party's
philosophy and program as was possible without unduly an-
tagonizing the majority ; and these leaders, working with the
majority undoubtedly did accomplish a good deal. We se-
cured a pretty fair and workable constitution, although un-
mistakably, of a most conservative flavor. As for my own
position, it is pretty well stated in a quotation I find credited
to me by the New Mexican of the day after the close of the
convention (Nov. 22nd) when short interviews from several
delegates were obtained. I was quoted as follows : "Curry
county will support the constitution. I will work for its
adoption ***. While we wanted direct legislation, we are
confident of getting it after statehood." That last phrase
shows I was unjustifiably optimistic, as well as somewhat
politically naive.
One of the bitterest controversies raged over the provi-
sion relating to districting the state for judicial and legisla-
tive purposes. We heard much about this charge of "Gerry-
mandering" for at least twenty years after the state's first
election. The "Gerrymandering" went merrily on notwith-
standing all protests and wailing from the minority. The
superiority in numbers possessed by the majority party,
then well united, was to it proof enough of the justice of its
course. And, while refined amenities of statecraft were
pretty nearly upset over this districting incident, it did not
make much difference in the long run, for, as one of the
majority delegates once declared in heated debate, the demo-
crats are against us anyway and are here to "raise hell what-
ever the majority does ; and we are here to write a constitu-
tion for this glorious new state to be — and, to protect the
interests of the republican party." In passing, it might be
noticed, that the complaint in respect to the Gerrymander
has largely subsided since the democrats, many years ago,
obtained control of both the senate and the house, and, like-
wise, came to elect most of the district judges. I suppose
it might be said that when the pain of defeat was thus al-
NEW MEXICO'S CONSTITUTION IN THE MAKING 175
leviated there was no occasion to kick about the tight shoe
that had theretofore pinched the political foot.
In support of the charge that there had been a highly
successful "Gerrymander" as to legislative districts, it will
be noticed that, although the democrats elected their gover-
nor, approximately half the state officers, and their candi-
date to congress, at the first state election, the republicans
controlled the legislature by a two-thirds majority in both
the senate and the house.
Notwithstanding the bitter controversy which waged
throughout practically the whole of the deliberations, many
of these differences, political and personal, were forgotten at
the close; and the last day and night session witnessed a
great get-together with much forgetting, and forgiving, on
all sides. Obviously, most delegates were glad that the job
was over and that statehood was on the way.
I recall the splendid eulogy paid to Mr. Spiess, the very
impartial presiding officer of the convention, by Delegate G.
A. Richardson of Roswell, when, on the closing night, he
presented to the president a beautiful silver service set, the
gift of all the convention. The speaker might have over-
stated the case a bit in his eulogy and, likewise, President
Spiess was not too restrained in speaking kindly of the
democrats in his response. This lack of restraint on both
sides was later emphasized by its bold contrast to the hot
campaign speeches which followed. I have often thought
that it would have been a nice thing, and would have greatly
neutralized a lot of political oratory, if the speakers of the
closing night of this historic event had preserved and re-
stated some of the high points of these fine eulogies in the
subsequent campaigns; but, I soon learned that this is a
practice not theretofore, then, nor thereafter, observed in
New Mexico politics.
Of course, I realized that perhaps the three barrels of
bottled beer and the large supply of sandwiches (a contribu-
tion from whom, we never knew — at least I never knew)
which were rolled into the foyer of the house chamber on
that closing night might have had something to do with
calming the spirits of the belligerents. Certainly a good
176 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
time was had by all until the adjournment of the conven-
tion sine die at about 4 a. m. the next morning.
I recall one incident when there ensued a bitter personal
encounter between a prominent democrat and a leading re-
publican of the convention, when, after an exhibition of vio-
lent language and bared fists, both men were led from the
floor by their respective friends, while the sergeant-at-arms,
alarmed at the fast movement of events, remained over in
one corner of the room. Major Whiting was the sergeant-
at-arms. He had gone through the Civil War, but he was
then a little old to referee bouts of such promise as this one.
The republican member returned to the hall within a day
or two, but the democratic delegate refused to return until he
could have a public apology from the offending brother.
This was never forthcoming and the delegate with the ten-
der feelings never came back, while the other went to the
U. S. senate.
Delegate E. D. Tittmann of Sierra county would provide
authority for a civil service system for all state employees.
The New Mexican of November 4th shows, significantly,
that this motion was lost for want of a second. Both parties
ignored the suggestion, evidently hoping to profit by the
spoils system, as they have — or have they?
Delegate Parker, then a territorial supreme court jus-
tice also, was responsible for the specific authority found in
the constitution (Art. 6, Sec. 13) for the establishment of
juvenile courts. According to newspaper files of the time,
Delegate Brice arose to object to the Parker proposal for the
specific mention of juvenile courts on the theory, to quote
from the press report: "that Sec. 1 already gives the legis-
lature that power ; it is just adding unnecessary language."
The proposed amendment then adopted, was placed at
the end of Sec. 1 of Art. 6, providing for the establishment of
courts inferior to district courts, and it read: "including
juvenile courts." From this little history it can be seen that
Brother Brice has always been consistent in his advocacy of
less words and more ideas, in all writing upon the law.
I recall an instance in recent months when, in a moment
of slight impatience with one of his associates on the bench
NEW MEXICO'S CONSTITUTION IN THE MAKING 177
because of what Brother Brice thought was too much lan-
guage with too little said, he remarked, "Judge, I believe you
can compress more words into a small idea than any lawyer
I ever knew." Brother Brice scolds his associates at times
for what he terms obstinacy of opinion. However, he guides
us away from many errors, even if, occasionally, he would
unintentionally lead us into a few.
It might be said that this three-word phrase, "including
juvenile courts," which Judge Parker insisted upon writing
into the constitution even at the risk of slight verbosity, may
have saved to us the juvenile courts as thereafter, and nearly
a quarter of a century ago, established by the legislature.
In a recent case (In re: Santillanes, 138 P. 2d 503) such
courts as now established were challenged as depriving the
district court of the powers given to them exclusively by
Art. 6, Sec. 13. Whether or not exactly decisive of the issue
there presented, this three-word phrase so written into the
constitution, was the subject of vigorous attack, and sup-
port, with varying interpretation, by counsel as well as by
members of the court in their very lengthy consideration of
that case.
One of the bitterest political controversies of all the
convention debates revolved about the question of direct leg-
islation— the initiative and referendum — with the recall en-
joying a considerable share of the spot-light. There was
never any doubt that there would be no provision for either
the initiative or recall, but the minority party, since all dele-
gates were pledged to both a liberal initiative and liberal ref-
erendum, and many favored the recall, made an issue of this
question which greatly stirred the convention ; and this issue
was echoed in many political speeches of later campaigns.
Mr. Fergusson, the minority leader in the convention, and
who at the time, shared with A. A. Jones of Las Vegas, and
Felix Martinez, the honor of speaking authoritatively upon
party matters, made what was to my mind, one of the great-
est speeches of the convention. This was upon the question
of direct legislation. The speech was at night, and it was a
field day for discussion of that intriguing issue, with all
standing space and the galleries completely filled with the
178 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
delegates' wives, Santa Fe society and other visitors. I can-
not recall now much of what was said by him. But the press
of that date gave liberal space to all the talks of the occasion,
the high-light of all convention oratory. In reading of these
now from newspaper files, I am less thrilled by the art and
histrionics of this effort of Fergusson, as well as that of
Fall, Catron, Bursum, Brice, Holloman, Nestor Montoya,
Rdchardson and Jim Hall, all of whom spoke that afternoon
and night. "Few speeches which have produced an electri-
cal effect upon listeners can bear the colorless photograph of
a printed record," some sage has very appropriately
reminded us.
H. B. Fergusson, an average size, rather stooped, man
with deep-set brown eyes and with what I would call a Cor-
dell Hull expression of a thinker with a soul, was then per-
haps about 60 years of age. I have often speculated upon
how deeply he might have stirred the convention had he been
of the majority faith, and how different the results might
have been. I recall how, upon that occasion, he played upon
the harp strings of our emotions — although he changed no
votes — in showing how the poor and neglected of the gr.eat
masses (we had not yet coined the term "forgotten man")
was being trampled underfoot by the greedy rich and cor-
porate interests which proposed to "control this convention,
and write this constitution for one of the last two states to
be born upon the American continent!"
One phrase he used, and which I think I can quote, sub-
stantially verbatim, was :
"From the cankerous womb of governmental
neglect are born, to contest for supremacy in this
government founded for all free men, two great
classes : The very poor and the very rich — the eco-
nomic tramps and the millionaires. I dedicate my
life, I cast my lot, with the common man."
As I sat there in wide-mouth, youthful wonder and lis-
tened to the delegates expounding these two clearly sepa-
rated political philosophies — the one implying that business
prosperity was paramount, and from it would flow prosper-
NEW MEXICO'S CONSTITUTION IN THE MAKING 179
ity for all ; and the other that moral and economic consider-
ations common to the average man should persuade us, — I
pondered, as in after years I decided, that both sides, per-
haps, had overstated their case.
The Santa Fe New Mexican, the acknowledged spokes-
man for the majority at the time and then edited by that
inimitable and able Paul A. F. Walter, now a banker and
still living, expressed the sentiment of the majority pretty
well on the second day of the convention when it said:
"There is a world of difference between the initiative and
referendum. While the Constitutional Convention will not
for a moment consider seriously any effort to adopt the
Initiative or the Recall, it will be disposed to adopt a modi-
fied referendum, and such exists to a certain extent in New
Mexico today." Then the editorial goes on to show that we
already had a modified form of referendum in matters in-
volving extension of municipal boundaries, fixing municipal
bonded indebtedness, permitting a local vote in fixing "herd
law" districts, etc. But, continued the editorial, "there is
a big distinction between this and the referendum which the
socialists advocate."
For a youngster in New Mexico politics, Delegate (later
Judge) Reed Holloman, who hailed from Quay county, (and
who I always contended held the democratic viewpoint, if he
did have republican leanings) had much to do with forming
the party's policy on direct legislation, and my information
is that he appraises as I do the hesitant, careful and limited
steps which the convention took when it consented to em-
body in the constitution any provision for the referendum.
As Mr. Justice Sadler, who authorized the recent opinion in
the so-called Tobacco Tax case (State v. Cleveland, 47 N. M.
140, 141 P2d 192) said: "After all, we have a representa-
tive form of government. The delegates to our Constitu-
tional Convention were schooled by tradition in representa-
tive government. At the time it convened the initiative and
referendum were largely new and untried. The convention
moved cautiously in the matter, rejecting the initiative alto-
gether and giving us the referendum carrying a broader
exemption in the safety clause than is to be found in any
180 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
other state constitution. There was nothing covert or con-
cealed in the matter. On the contrary, the question was
widely publicized in the press and from the platform all
over the State and the Constitution was adopted with a full
knowledge by all of just what it did and did not have on the
subject." And, continuing, the opinion reads: "If it seems
desirable that a larger reservation of power be lodged in
the people under which the popular veto of legislation may
be exercised, the remedy is not through the courts *** but
rather through an amendment to the constitution using lan-
guage of similar import to that urged upon, but rejected by,
the constitution makers in 1910." The opinion then points
out that in no other constitution of the some twenty states
employing the referendum is like language employed in de-
fining the exceptions from referendum operation ; that "In
most, if not all, of the other constitutions providing for the
referendum the language of exemption is 'laws necessary for
the immediate preservation of the public peace, health or
safety/ or that in substance." The convention advisedly
rejected the minority report which would have employed the
term "Laws for the immediate preservation of the public
peace, health and safety." The official proceedings of the
convention (Pages 66 & 67) disclose that Delegates A. H.
Hudspeth and H. B. Fergusson brought in and urged the
adoption of the minority report, which, had it been em-
ployed, would, of course, have greatly widened the operation
of this instrument of legislation veto.
Father Julius Hartmann, now of Santa Fe, then in his
late twenties, was the chaplain of the convention, and was
very popular with all delegates. His prayers were suffi-
ciently general in application and abstract and impersonal
in character to create no feeling of partiality. This was in
strong contrast to the Presbyterian minister2 who, as chap-
lain of the first state senate, of which I was also a member,
had, by certain prayers, when he thought the majority was
running a little too rough-shod over the weak minority, in-
voked divine guidance that the blows might be softened. I
2. The Rev. B. Z. McCullough, then pastor of the Santa F6 Presbyterian Church. —
Editor.
NEW MEXICO'S! CONSTITUTION IN THE MAKING 181
remember, too well, that the blows were not softened; and
also (it was generally understood) that a caucus of the ma-
jority was called to ascertain whether the chaplain should
not be "talked to," or even discharged, because of what was
thought to be an unnecessary effort to invoke God in our
local politics. I recall that neither was the chaplain dis-
charged nor was the tone of his ministerial rebuke there-
after materially (though it may have been a little) modified.
We remember that the president did, in the summer of
1911, veto the first act of congress approving, jointly, the
New Mexico and Arizona constitutions; and it was on ac-
count of Arizona's liberal acceptance of direct legislation.
I was in Washington at the time of this veto with a commit-
tee of New Mexico democrats, there trying to help secure
democratic house reservations and conditions, upon which
to base approval, and heard him announce to this committee,
the day after the passage of the act in congress, that he pro-
posed to veto it. He explained that he was sorry he had to
do this since he approved heartily of New Mexico's excellent
constitution ; but that he did not propose to violate his oath
of office which had bound him to preserve the traditional
American form of government for all states.
Incidentally, I am the only surviving member of this
small, unofficial, group in Washington at the time. It was
composed of: A. A. Jones, Summers Burkhart, H. B. Fer-
gusson, P. F. McCanna, Felix Martinez, J. D. Hand, W. R.
McGill, and myself.
We know of the compromise which was then worked
out in congress by which it was proposed that Arizona
should first vote upon the question of removing this feature
so obnoxious to the president; and within a few weeks the
new act of congress was passed and signed by the president,
and statehood for both territories was thus achieved. Ari-
zona did remove the source of annoyance, but at the next
election after statehood, voted by a tremendous majority to
replace it.
It might be noted in this connection that the most un-
favorable feature of the original of our constitution, that
relating to the method of amendment, was modified by popu-
182 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
lar vote at the first state election through provision, insisted
upon by the democrats and exacted by congress, for a vote
upon this issue, as a condition precedent to our admission.
The original provision would have made any amendment
most difficult, we can all now see, in the light of experience
which shows it to be difficult enough to secure desirable
amendments even upon questions upon which both major
parties agree.
Of the 100 delegates to the convention only seventeen
survive as of this writing. Strange to say, the democrats,
with a little more than one-fourth of the original member-
ship, now have one majority of those surviving. This is
not counting, either, the few republicans of that convention
who later became democrats. Incidentally, it might be added,
that all of these men who changed to democratic affilia-
tion are still living. Whether it is purely co-incidental that
long life and party irregularity go hand in hand, I hazard
no guess. The record does not disclose that any democrat
of that convention ever changed his party affiliation, which
may, after all, offer some support to the familiar saying that
only the smart man changes his mind.
I have heard of no particular explanation as to why the
democrats outlived the republicans, as a group, excepting it
will be noticed that most of the younger delegates were of
the democratic faith. This may be the explanation. Brother
Pat Hamilton is my authority for the assertion that demo-
crats do not, as a fact, live any longer than republicans ; it
just seems longer.
In Oklahoma, of the 112 delegates to that state's con-
stitutional convention of 1907, thirty-one were living at the
time of a reunion held at Guthrie on September 18th, last,
the report of this meeting- tells us. So, when we remember
that all but thirteen of these delegates were democrats, there
might be, after all, something to the fact that democrats live
longer than republicans.
While no member of the convention ever became gover-
nor of the state, we know that the first two United States
senators, Catron and Fall, were members of the body, and
NEW MEXICO'S* CONSTITUTION IN THE MAKING 183
likewise, H. B. Fergusson, who, with George Curry,
represented us in congress.
It might be noted, incidentally, that at no time since
statehood has our supreme court been without one or more
members who served in this convention: Justices Roberts,
Parker, Raynolds, Davis, Brice, Hudspeth, and your humble
servant. But for his defeat by the republican candidate,
Mr. Justice Bickley, of our court, would have had the same
distinction. He had not learned yet, or probably he didn't
care too much, that Coif ax hadn't begun to elect any demo-
crats to office by 1910. Certainly not when the powerful
and able Charles Springer was the alternative. Numerous
other members later served in district, county and state of-
fice, all with honor and credit, as far as the record shows.
It may be of interest to the bar to know that the original
of the constitution, with the signatures of the signers, which
has been left lying about in the vault of the secretary of
state through the years, is now to be preserved in a neatly
constructed glass-covered box and under lock and key, pro-
vided by our present secretary of state, Mrs. Cleveland. It
is sad to relate that but few of the original papers and rec-
ords of the convention proceedings have been preserved. I
do find in that office the original files on the preamble, and
the boundaries of the state, and two or three others.
As I reflect upon those days and the men of this conven-
tion, I believe it can be said that, notwithstanding the wide
difference in political philosophy which separated the two
parties at that time — many of which differences have now
ceased to exist as experience has taught us all to distinguish
between that which is desirable and that which is not — that
no more patriotic or earnest body of men ever assembled in
any territory in preparation for statehood. That somewhat
sefish purposes motivated some of the delegates goes without
saying ; but the fact that most of such purposes were pretty
well circumscribed or thwarted, justifies this tribute to the
patience, skill and patriotism of that body as a whole.
New Mexico's interests were varied and, in many cases,
rather conflicting; and the idea of writing a constitution
which would fairly serve the people for decades and not
184 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
years merely, and which would, at the same time, pass mus-
ter in a congress then divided, politically, with a democratic
house and republican senate, and which would meet the ap-
proval of a most conservative president, was no little prob-
lem. And, it might be noticed that, although we have had, at
all times, authority for the legislature to initiate the calling
of a constitutional convention to rewrite, or revise, our con-
stitution, yet there has never been, from any quarter, so far
as I have learned, any demand for such a convention. All of
the few essential amendments adopted have been made
through the more simple and direct method.
It is quite possible that no one of the seventeen f ramers
of our constitution now surviving, will live to see called a
convention to revise; and this, in itself, would represent a
record of general approval not achieved in many such con-
ventions.
We can't say there was anything unusual, or outstand-
ing, that came from this convention. We were dealing sim-
ply with the ideologies and problems which were common
to political parties, the several state legislatures and con-
gress itself, in that period of growing political pains and
restlessness. It was the unusual era which lay, say, between
the early 90's and the time of the first World War.
It was simply Democracy feeling its way along : march-
ing, battling, hating, loving. Political corruption, confined
exclusively to neither political party, and economic injus-
tices inflicted upon the great masses, and selfishness, had
bred unnecessarily deep class-hatreds ; bigotry and tolerance
were struggling, each for supremacy as in no other like
period of our history, perhaps; certainly never on such a
wide scale. And, the wonder is, not that our country as a
whole eventually achieved so little in unity, security and
justice, but rather that we in fact escaped that yawning pit
of political darkness which came later to devour the other
world democracies — those which, in desperation, accepted
the rule and dictates of men, as they turned away from gov-
ernment by law. And, for this ive must owe something to
Divine Guidance.
Historical fR
PALACE OF THE GOVERNORS, SANTA FE
July, 1944
Editors
LANSING B. BLOOM PAUL A. F. WALTER
Associates
PERCY M. BALDWIN GEORGE P. HAMMOND
FRANK T. CHEETHAM THEODOSIUS MEYER, O.F.M,
VOL. XIX JULY, 1944 No. 3
CONTENTS
William Kronig, New Mexico Pioneer, I
Charles Irving Jones (ed.) 185
The Spread of Spanish Horses in the Southwest. D. E. Worcester 225
A Lynching at Tucson in 1873 (written by John G. Bourke)
L.B.B. (ed.) 233
A Correction ....... France V. Scholes 243
Book Reviews :
Saye, New Viewpoints in Georgia History . P.A.F.W. 247.
Mosk, Land Tenure Problems in the Santa Fe Railroad
Grant Area Frank D. Reeve 249
Velasco (ed.), El Federalista .... L.B.B. 250
News and Comments:
Historical Society Annual Meeting
Hester Jones and Marjorie Tichy 251
Tips for the Plains Traveler . Wells Fargo Messenger 253
—List of Postmasters of Santa Fe (1849 to date) . . . 254
Census Supervisors of New Mexico (1850 to date) . . 255
Necrology: . . . P.A.F.W. 256
Fred S. Donnell; Myron B. Keator; Mrs. Napoleon B.
Laughlin; Bernhardt Robert Britton; John Walz Catron
The NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW is published jointly by the Historical
Society of New Mexico and the University of New Mexico. Subscription to the
quarterly is $3.00 a year in advance ; single numbers, except those which have
become scarce, are $1.00 each.
Business communications should be addressed to Mr. P. A. F. Walter, State
Museum, Santa Fe, N. M. ; manuscripts and editorial correspondence should be
addressed to Prof. L. B. Bloom, University of New Mexico, AJbuquerque, U. M.
Entered as second-class matter at Santa Fe, New Mexico
UNIVERSITY PRESS, ALBUQUERQUE, N. M.
WLLIAM KRONIG (1827-1896), PIONEER AT WATROUS, N. M.
NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL
REVIEW
VOL. XIX JULY, 1944 No. 3
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER
from his memories of 1849-1860
By CHARLES IRVING JONES
EDITOR'S FOREWORD: The author informs us that he has
written his account of William Kronig from notes which Kronig
himself left. It is evident that these notes did not constitute a diary,
nor were they otherwise contemporary; rather they were reminis-
cences which he wrote not earlier than 1861 and perhaps at a later
date. This is shown, for example, by his references to John C. Fre-
mont as "General." Fremont did not enjoy that title until his service
during the Civil War; during his earlier military service he attained
only the rank of lieutenant-colonel.
From data supplied by the author and also found elsewhere, we
are informed that William Kronig was born in Pataborn, Westphalia,
Germany, on February 3, 1827. He migrated to the United States in
1847, and within two years after landing in New York City he had
roamed over a considerable part of this country: out to Wisconsin,
then to St. Louis and south to New Orleans. There yellow fever was
raging and he returned up the river to Williamsport. After a trip
to Texas, he headed east: Louisville, Cincinnati, Philadelphia, and
back to New York. There for a short time he worked in an "under-
ground grocery" at $6.00 a month, but was fired because he would
not pass counterfeit money. Again he headed for Milwaukee and from
there he made his way to St. Paul on foot. Returning to Milwaukee,
he learned of the discovery of gold in California and on July 4, 1849,
he was at Independence, Mo., starting with others for the diggings.
All the notes have been supplied by the editor. — L.B.B.
CHAPTER I
HOLERA ! This word was on every lip. People were
dying. It was a horrible plague; once contracted,
it would bite into one's life with such viciousness that it
would not let go until the poor unsuspecting victim had
weakened to a mere shadow and then — watch death creep
185
186 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
up slowly until the end. This was Independence, Missouri,
in 1849.
I had come, from the east, to this large outfitting Em-
porium for the purpose of meeting wagon trains and trap-
pers, with the intention of later joining General Fremont's
troops and going to Santa Fe, New Mexico, and California.
My boat became bogged in the Missouri River mud and
I missed a chance to join this military force, but was
determined to see the vast country to the west.1
On July 4th of the year mentioned, in company with
a young German doctor with whom I had become acquainted,
I prepared to leave this disease-tortured community. We
soon arranged to travel with a wagon train, and for a
sum of money they agreed to carry our luggage and feed
us over the entire trip to Santa Fe.
In due time the train was on its way west. We were
riding our recently purchased horses alongside the moving
vehicles. The train was composed of a number of canvas-
covered wagons, drawn by oxen with bull whackers at
their sides, lashing their blacksnake whips. It was sur-
prising to see how cleverly these men manipulated their
whips with such short handles. It seemed to me that some
of them could pick a fly off an oxen's back.
The wagons rumbled along for days with the oxen
yokes squeaking under the strain of the pulling animals.
The wheel marks, deep in the earth, made pathways for
future travelers and never-to-be-forgotten times of history.
The trip became monotonous as we rode over the rolling
hills with clusters of trees along the stream beds. We finally
reached Cow Creek2 which, I would judge, was about 200
miles or more from Independence. Here we saw our first
1. Kronig's memory was at fault here. He can be referring only to Fremont's
winter expedition of 1848-49, financed by his father-in-law, Benton, and others of
St. Louis who wanted to find passes through the Rockies for a railroad from the upper
waters of the Rio Grande westward to the Pacific. It was not a "military force"
because Fremont had been court-martialed for his doings in California in 1846 and
had resigned his commission in 1847. It is difficult to explain Kronig's reason for
failing to find Fremont at Independence, Mo., because the latter had gone west eome
nine months before. Perhaps Kronig was misled by belated news items regarding
Fremont.
2. A north tributary of the Arkansas River near modern Hutchinson, Kans.
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 187
buffalo grazing on the hillside in the distance. The Captain
halted the wagon train and ordered several of the younger
men to kill some fresh meat. The order was obeyed at once
by several of the most energetic young men, who started
out on their horses. In my position near the wagon train
I was able to observe one of the young men ride along the
side of a galloping buffalo and fire a ball into the beast.
The animal was running full blast and when the lead struck
him he toppled to the ground with his nose grinding into
the dirt. The bullet must have pierced his heart for he did
not kick. The rider was off his horse and with a long
butcher knife cut the dead animal's throat. If the animal
had been alive he would have plunged the knife into the
jugular veins just the same. By the time this exhibit was
over, the wagon train had formed in a circle and the oxen
and horses were turned loose or staked in a grassy location
so they could feed for the night. Before sun-down there
was buffalo meat roasting on the fire.
Next day, not to be out-done, I went forth to prove
that a tenderfoot could kill a buffalo; and before leaving
I made a brag that I would return with meat for the wagon
train. It was rather a sad lesson to me for I lost my way
before night. I did not give a thought to the fact that our
camp would be at another location before I returned, for
they were steadily traveling westward. As I rode along,
I saw a bear-looking animal of small stature moving cas-
ually. I rode up cautiously and shot him. He died before
long and I tied him to the saddle and looked around. By
this time it was getting toward afternoon and the sun was
far toward the west. It was then that I began to think of
camp. I rode in great haste trying to locate them and as
dark came on I dismounted, letting my horse graze in the
rich grass growing everywhere. I sat down nearly ex-
hausted, and I was about to make my bed down for the
night and stake my horse nearby, when I noticed some
lights in the distance. I had been warned that we were
nearing the Indian Country, and this roused me to move
cautiously and not ride directly into camp without first
investigating. It was about an hour later that I decided
188 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
to ride up. I did and to my amazement I was back in my
own wagon train camp. I had carted the badger all the
way with me and when I neared the camp I threw him
away, staking my horse near the wagons and throwing my
saddle and bedding near by. I went into camp and was
pleased, for food was near the fire, and to tell the truth it
was very tasteful.
Not knowing it, I had brought in something that was
needed by the bull whackers. However, they found the
badger in the morning and skinned it. The hide was used
for crackers on their whips. I was told that in the future
if I killed any more badger I was to skin it and save the
hide. During the day I explained how I had been unable
to find any buffalo and that I had become lost; and from
then on, as long as I stayed with the train, nearly all of
the men teased me for being a tenderfoot.
Each day we traveled, making a few miles. Nearing
Pawnee Forks,3 we overtook a wagon train owned by Mr.
M. McGuffin.4 It was an amusing sight to see his carriage
drawn by oxen. He had had a number of fine horses that
he intended to take to Chihuahua, Mexico, to sell, as there
was a good market at that point. Two days before we over-
took his train he was robbed by the Indians, who took all
his horses leaving only the oxen.
The two wagon trains traveled together, and when we
reached Fort Mann,5 we were robbed of all our horses except
mine; he was staked away from the other horses and so
escaped. The Indians had crept into camp that night and
stolen the horses without anybody knowing it.
The next night I was on guard duty until 12 midnight,
when I went to bed. The night was one of those black
nights. I unrolled my blankets on the ground as usual and
staked my horse within ten feet of where my bed was
located, using my saddle as a pillow. There was a heavy
dew falling so I covered my head with the canvas. However,
3. Another north tributary of the Arkansas, between Lamed and Kingsley, Kans.
4. Without doubt, this was one of the Magoffin brothers, perhaps Samuel but
more probably James W., who was already established at "Magoffinsville" within what
is now El Paso, Texas.
6. Fort Mann was eight miles from Dodge City, Kans.
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 189
I was worried about my horse and every little while I would
look around. About two hours later the night had somewhat
cleared; a person could be seen for some distance and, as
I looked this time, I saw an Indian leading my horse away.
I roused the camp, but the Indian mounted the animal and
was gone. I grabbed my gun and shot pouch and started
after him. It was not long until I was within shooting
distance but I found, that during the confusion, I had
grabbed up the wrong shot pouch, so returned to camp.
It was not until afterward that I found out I was nearly
shot. A man in the McGuffin camp saw the horse being
lead away and he returned to camp a short distance away
for his gun. It was when he looked again that I came in
view; he aimed and just as he was about to pull the trigger,
he saw my hat and pulled the gun upwards as he fired it.
I was curious, and when I returned to where my bed had
been laid out on the ground, I found a pair of Moccasins.
Some of the bull whackers said that they were made by
the Pawnee Indians.
The trip across from the Arkansas River to Cimarron,
which began near Cold Springs and ended near Sand Creek,6
was a distance of about 60 miles and no water between the
two points, so the traveling was done without much stop-
ping. The day was very tiring, and the night more so.
Part way across, our wagon Captain permitted us to stop
for 20 minutes to eat some cold bread and beans ; but nature
was against us for as we sat down to eat, a storm came up
driving us under the wagons. The hail was so large that
the oxen would not stand still and the bull whackers had
to unhitch them. However, we were so hungry that we
completed the pot of beans before the hail storm quit. I
have seen many hail stones but these were the largest I
had ever witnessed. I presume being inexperienced with
the west, this made a great impression on me. However,
I can still remember the beans.
6. There is an unfortunate confusion here, for Kronig has Cold Spring at the
wrong end of the "Cimarron Cut-Off." Checking with the tabulation given us by
Josiah Gregg, we find that, coming west (from the Arkansas to the Cimarron), Sand
Creek was 50 miles from the Arkansas Crossing, and Cold Spring was 93 miles far-
ther west.
190 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
As we neared the Cimarron River, we encountered a
friendly band of Comanche Indians. Here we had an op-
portunity to replace our animals, so I purchased an iron
grey. He was a friendly animal and did my bidding with
dispatch. Time went on and as I wearied of traveling so
slowly, I set out ahead, following the trail for miles over
grassy, rolling hills until I reached the water hole where
the wagon train was to camp that night. I watered my
horse, unsaddled him and then picketed him nearby. I was
tired so lay down, using my saddle as a pillow, and went
to sleep. If it had not been for the flies bothering my horse,
I would probably have been murdered. The picket rope was
set so close to me that the rope dangled across my body as
the horse fought the flies that gathered on his back. It was
when he swung his head around that the rope caught on
my arm and awakened me. I looked around and not a very
great distance away I saw several Indians riding towards
me at a fast gallop. There was a chance that I could escape
them. I saddled my horse rapidly, not stopping long enough
to tighten up the cinch, and was on my way back towards
the wagon train. The Indians gained on me but their yelling
frightened my horse so that he out-distanced them and when
the ride was over we were in sight of the wagon train. The
bull whackers and others, seeing the predicament, ran out
towards me with their guns. I must have been a funny
sight for I was hanging to the horse's mane with one hand
and with the other trying to hold the saddle from sliding
off the horse.
As we neared the line of New Mexico, news of Indian
atrocities reached us, and our wagon train Captain doubled
precautions, and additional guards were placed to prevent
surprise attacks.
The German Doctor, who had been my companion since
we left Independence, became ill and the men growled
when he asked to be excused from guard duty. Feeling
sorry for him, as he was not the pioneer type, I volunteered
to stand his watch as well as my own. However, I was
tired also and along towards morning I feel asleep. Much
as I was trying to do my duty, I had not performed it, and
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 191
when morning came I was awakened by a loud yell of "In-
dians." I found that my hands and feet were tied. I tried
to stand up and did get to my feet but stumbled over on
a Prickley Pear Cactus and was stuck from most every angle.
It was days before I had pulled out all the thorns. Of course,
I was at fault and was ready to take my punishment and
told the Captain so. He laughed and said he believed I had
had sufficient punishment for sometime to come.
We traveled for days over the rolling mountains until
we reached Red River7 and on to Santa Clara Springs,8
or what is now known as Wagon Mound. In the distance,
the four Mounds appeared to be the wheels of a giant wagon
and on nearing them they became mountains with rugged
sides and flat tops, no trees, but covered with grass which
gave them a silky appearance. At the Santa Clara Springs
the water was good and we welcomed the camp near this
point.
Perhaps you do not believe in snakes, but at this point
I had a bed fellow. A visitor in our camp asked if he could
use my bed while I was on guard duty during the first part
of the night and I gave him permission, but when I came
in near midnight there was no one in my bed. Thinking
nothing about it, I went to bed, which I had made on a
level spot before dark, near the wagons. Being very tired
I went to sleep as soon as I laid down. Along towards morn-
ing I slowly came to my senses, awakened by feeling like
something was moving under me. When I did come to life,
I jumped up and threw the blankets back and to my amaze-
ment and horror there was not one but two fairly large
rattle snakes coiled under the bed clothes. I, of course, killed
the snakes, but from then on I was very careful to inspect
my bed before going to sleep.
It was now that I began to realize this vast country
was unpopulated, perhaps with no human beings making
a home except the Indians. Of course there were trappers
7. He should have said the "Canadian River." It was a very common mistake
(and is still often encountered) to confuse the Canadian with the Red, which lay
farther south and was not touched by the Santa Fe Trail.
8. This was a stopping place halfway between Ocate Creek and the Mora River.
192 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
and traders on the road but no people settling down to
make homes. I now saw the west as it had been pictured
to me. My home had been in a thickly populated country
and before I left Westphalia, Germany, I could not conceive
of such a vast unsettled place. I was born on February 3,
1827, and was about 19 years old before leavng Europe.
I, like many young men, came to explore new fields and,
of course, seek fame and fortune. Before coming so far
west I traveled around in the United States, going to New
Orleans, then .back to New York by way of St. Louis, west
to Minneapolis, and then to Independence, where this story
begins.
We came in sight of Las Vegas and camped for the
last time before going into the town. It was here that we
were brought face to face with reality, witnessing the
murder of one of our members; — a horrbile sight! One
of the bull whackers had been tantalizing another bull
whacker, a Chawnee [Shawnee] Indian. Smith had on
this day been especially insulting to the Chawnee and along
about noon, while we were eating our dinner, Smith cast
further insults. The Chawnee lost control of himself and
pulled his gun, shooting Smith in the heart. The impact
of the bullet caused the bull whacker to shudder and then
fall forward on his face. The Chawnee was so furious that
he rushed at Smith with a long knife in his teeth, grabbed
the hair on top of his head in an attempt to scalp him.
Some of the other men stopped him. The Chawnee, with
a sudden twitch of his body, tore loose from the men and
started for the hills with his gun aimed at the lot of us.
We were all glad that the Indian escaped as we felt that
Smith got what was coming to him.
We buried Smith without any ceremony and prepared
to move on. Las Vegas was an adobe-built town composed
of about 100 small shacks or huts placed at random. A
few were built along the main traveled road and around
a square. The material was of mud, and out in the rear of
the houses there was an oven, constructed in form much
similar to the old bee hive and made of mud, used to bake
bread. On the side of some of the houses we could see
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 193
corn in the air, hung from the extended rafters, and on
others chili, coloring from green to red. To the east and
south the fields were flourishing with growing corn, beans
and grain. It appeared that they were well provided with
food. We did not stop here, however, as the main campers'
stop was located at Telecotte [Tecolote],9 about 15 miles
from there, to where we proceeded and camped for the
night. To the south I could see a starvation peak, a very
steep mountain, and at the top and extending downward
probably 50 feet, a steep bluff. I was told that a party of
trappers had stayed off an Indian attack for days, nearly
starving to death. There was a small crevice through which
they were able to crawl to the top; they protected them-
selves by dropping rocks down on their enemy. I was told
that if it had not been for the stormy weather there, the
trappers would have died of thirst.
At Telecotte we found a Mr. Moore,10 who was running
a store. Here we were allowed to sleep, as this gentleman
provided us with guards and herders. All the men from
the wagon train congregated in or about the store and all
during the night news was passed from one to the other,
and religious singing took place. It was a pleasant night.
From Telecotte to Santa Fe the trip was short and a
few days later we reached that point.
Within sight of the town, the wagon train stopped and
we all prepared for a grand entrance into the plaza. Nearly
all of the men cleaned up, putting on their best clothes;
some shaved their faces; some of which had not been
touched with a razor from the time we left Independence;
and some of the faces seemed never to have been shaved.
At any rate, a general cleaning-up was in progress before
our entrance was made.
In due time the wagons rumbled into the square. Each
of the wagon traders pulled his wagons up to the doors of
a commercial house and in no time they were engaged in
meeting old and new friends.
9. If this is not a misreading of the notes, it is a case of transliteration. The
correct placename is Tecolote (Spanish for "owl").
10. This Mr. Moore has not been identified.
194 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
The houses were of adobe, situated in a square that
appeared to me to be to the north. Among them I noticed
a long, rambling building with an equally long porch ex-
tending the full length, which was the Palace of Governors.
Doors were located at intervals and people congregated
there. Just as we entered town, a stage drove up; it had
come from Independence. The people, nearly all Mexicans,
were sociable. I was rather disappointed in this place. I
had expected to see some large buildings. However, it was
here that I witnessed a sight I had never seen before — a
burro loaded with stove wood.
CHAPTER II
Santa Fe was a town where many Mexican and Ameri-
can people were in the trading business, bringing goods
from Independence to this town to trade and sell, and on
the eastward trip, to carry fur, hides, and other things
that were of value to the people in Missouri and further
east.
This business was flourishing. In looking over the
names of the Commission houses, I found that there were
a number of the natives of the Rico (rich) class in the
business.
On every corner and many places between the corners
were saloons and gambling houses. Women could be had
for hire at most of the places and, from all appearances,
they were being used extensively, especially when the wagon
trains reached the town. Into this place I came as a young
man, with very little experience. It was rather embar-
rassing to me when I was invited in by a painted female.
The town was full of young men ; many were without
work.
It was the intention of the Doctor and myself to con-
tinue to California, going by the way of Albuquerque, as
soon as we could secure a means of travel, but a circumstance
came up that forced me to stay in Santa Fe. Upon the
advice of a friend in Independence, I had purchased a mer-
cantile check for one hundred dollars, to be cashed in Santa
Fe. Mr. Cartwright, owner of the brokerage house in In-
Kansas City,
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 195
dependence, had died of cholera. During the time I had
left Independence, and at the time of my arrival in Santa
Fe, his business was in the hands of the Administrator.
During the investigation of Mr Cartwright's affairs, he
came across the record of this check and stopped payment,
sending the notice by mail-stage which, of course, reached
Santa Fe far in advance of my arrival.
To eat, it was then necessary for me to locate some
employment; but the town of Santa Fe was filled with
young men and employment was very hard to find. To go
on to California would cost money and I did not have it.
So I decided to make the best of it and try to exist here.
While in New Orleans I had found work with a cigar maker,
who taught me the trade. I had foresight enough to pur-
chase a few hundred pounds of tobacco before leaving In-
dependence, thinking that I could sell at a profit somewhere
along the line; but, upon arriving, to my disappointment,
I had no money to pay for the transportation. Finally, after
considerable argument, the wagon train owner left the
tobacco with a merchant in Santa Fe, with the provision
that I could draw it out in small quantities as I needed it
and pay for the freight.
The cigar making and the selling of the tobacco went
along very well for a while, but before long my supply
was exhausted. At this point I found that I was unable
to pay the hotel bill, so I rented a room together with two
young Germans named Viereck and Schlesinger and after
that, kept house.
I was still to encounter another difficulty. I placed
my horse with a Mexican herder; not having the presence
of mind and thinking that he would not over charge me,
I let him take the horse; but at the end of the month he
presented me with a bill at the rate of a dollar a day. I
could see that the only way out of this difficulty was to
sell the horse, so I told my new acquaintance, Viereck, to
make the sale. The horse brought thirteen dollars and the
bill for pasture was eight dollars, so I was just five dollars
ahead.
This German, Viereck, from Berlin, was a brother of
196 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
the celebrated actress of the same name. He was a happy-
go-lucky fellow. Never had a dollar ahead but was rich
in resources and always in the best of humor, and was
delighted whenever he could play a joke or prank on any-
one, principally his friends and acquaintances, disarming
us on all occasions by his ingenious maneuvers. He was a
professional painter of theatrical scenery.
After the supply of money he had accumulated in trav-
eling across the country gave out, he decided to become a
barber, and so he started a shop. An American carpenter
was engaged to build a chair. This man was a tall, serious-
minded, assumptive person. Next, to establish the shop, he
rented a room from an old Mexican woman. He was treated
by a German Medical Doctor and I presume, at the same
time, borrowed a little money from him. Viereck did not
have any money with which to pay any one of the three,
but to my surprise he did a very satisfactory business;
however, the gamblers, principally the Monte game, got
all the money he made, and some of my cigar money, which
he borrowed and distributed among the saloons during the
evenings. His life was not very pleasant, for every morning
he would have visitors — the American carpenter, the Mexi-
can woman, and the German doctor, each trying to collect
their money. Also, he had other callers trying to make
collections.
My business did not promise a very brilliant future.
Schlesinger had not found employment and was willing to
try other adventures. About this time there was a terri-
torial call for volunteers from Taos and this was an oppor-
tunity for additional adventure. During my business of
selling cigars, I became acquainted with Colonel Beal,11
who was at that time on a visit at Santa Fe. Asking him
for advice as to how to gain some kind of adventure, and
still pay my way as I went along, he advised me to join
this territorial volunteer troop. After conferring with
Viereck and Schlesinger, we all decided to go at once.
11. Benjamin Lloyd Beall was, at this time, major with the First Dragoons, but
had a brevet as lieutenant colonel (Mar. 16, 1848) for meritorious conduct in the
Mexican War. For a few weeks, Beall was acting civil-military governor of New
Mexico (while Col. J. M. Washington was out in the Navaho country).
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 197
Viereck sold his barber chair and in turn bought a
large cartoon and went to work with his crayons. The
picture represented himself in the background, with his
hands spread out and stuck to the end of his nose, and
in front, his three principal creditors, who could be easily
recognized by anyone. We had completed 'all arrangements
and were intending to walk to Taos in the morning, or if
possible obtain some kind of a ride along the 'road. Morning
came, and before Viereck left he wanted to know what
effect his picture had on the three people interested. He
had me stand near the house opposite so that I could be
the observer. The wait was short, for the carpenter was
first to show up. He nervously knocked at the door several
times and when no answer came, he looked in the window
where the picture had been posted. His anger was beyond
description and his language, in English, was unprintable.
Next came the German doctor, a man of middle age, who
with a firm step and sober face approached the door with
a look of determination to collect his money or know the
reason why. His loud knocks resounded into the empty
house and after he had repeated the rapping three times,
he went to the window. He, likewise, stood in amazement
for an instant and then began to curse in German. He went
back to the door and tried the lock, but it was secure so
he left. I was having my fun. Soon the old Mexican woman
appeared with a black shawl over her head, dress just about
dragging the ground and bare-footed. She knocked timidly
and no reply, then repeated it several times. She then went
to the window; her language was in a high pitched voice
which I did not understand. She shook her hand at the
picture and then broke down crying. Viereck had com-
missioned me to give her the key, which I did. She got
down on her knees and spoke pleadingly and pointed to the
picture, then at me. I was unable to understand so I walked
away, probably with a curse on my soul.
My friends were waiting for me a short distance from
town, under a pinion tree. I sat down with them and de-
scribed the scenes ; after my description Viereck was nearly
overcome with laughter.
198 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
We soon started out again on foot, walking down the
road and talking as we went, wishing someone would come
along and give us a ride. Our wish soon came true ; before
an hour's time we were overtaken by Colonel Beall, with
twelve dragoons. The Colonel stopped and chatted a minute,
during which he inquired where we were going. He then
invited us to mount behind his men, which we very happily
accepted.
We were quite pleased with ourselves until the con-
tinual galloping of the horses began to tell on us. The
horses did not quit galloping until we reached Santa Cruz
de la Canada, a distance of about sixteen miles. Riding
behind was no easy task and before we had traveled a mile
we all asked to be let off, but the dragoons would not stop.
We even begged, but to no avail. When we reached the
first stop we dismounted and decided to try and get along
without riding behind the dragoons. At La Canada, we met
two very good Mexican merchants, who offered hospitality
and we were more than glad to accept. After resting through
the night we were again able to continue our travel. We
went to Rio Arriba,12 where we were fortunate enough to
meet Mr. Pantaleon Archuleta, a friend of my old teacher,
Mr. Mink.13 A brother of Mr. Mink lived in Santa Fe and
before leaving there he had given me a letter to Mr. Archu-
leta. We were invited by this gentleman to stay and the
description of the food served us is well worth recording
here. The supper consisted of Chili con Carne (meat with
peppers) and Atoli (mush made out of blue cornmeal that
had been parched) . At first I was not impressed with the
meal but after I had eaten I was well satisfied.
Our ride behind the dragoons made us quite sore and
12. "Rio Arriba" (Up River) was a regional term, distinguishing settlements of
the Rio Grande valley above Santa Fe from those which were below (Rio Aba jo).
Sometimes (as here) it seems to have been used for the settlement otherwise known
as Plaza Alcalde, which was the home of Juan Andres Archuleta (prominent in the
Mexican period of our history) and his famous son Diego Archuleta. This Pantaleon
was perhaps a brother.
13. From a later mention of this man, it would appear that Kronig's "old teacher"
(perhaps from his boyhood in Germany) had come to New Mexico and settled at
Alcalde. Perhaps he or his brother in Santa Fe was the "J. H. Mink, interpreter"
whose name as a witness is found on a facsimile copy of an Indian treaty of July
1850. (Abel, ed., The Official Correspondence of James S. Calhoun, 242)
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 199
on the second day I was much worse than the first. My
partners decided that we should each have a mule or horse.
However, as I was the only one that had any money, but
not enough to purchase three mules, it was decided that
we would hire two mules and that one of us would walk
part of the time. I was the first to walk and, according1 to
our agreement, they were to ride to a hill in the near dis-
tance and wait for me. The point was marked by two trees.
We had made arrangements to turn the mules over to a
man in Taos, who would return them. Well, we started
and I trailed behind, walking as rapidly as I could but was
far behind them when they reached the hill. I was, again,
to experience an unpleasant situation, for when I reached
the hill they had gone on and I never did catch up with
them. Of course I was sadly disappointed in them but
traveled on; that night I reached Embudo,14 located on
the bank of the Rio Bravo, or Rio Grande. Here I met a
Canadian-Frenchman named Chalif ount,15 who had a trading
post. This man was very kind and gave me my supper
and bed. After breakfast, when I tried to pay him, he
refused it. I was glad for I was down to my last twenty-
five dollars. The next day I walked on to Taos.
My two companions were guests of the only hotel in
the town, which was run by Judge Beaubien.16 They seemed
to have the confidence needed, for I, with twenty-five dollars
in my pocket, did not have the cheek to stay at the hotel,
feeling that if I did I was not protecting myself for future
events. So I bought myself a loaf of bread and then searched
for a convenient straw stack. During my fretful sleep I
wondered how those two were going to pay their bills.
14. Embudo ("funnel"), about twelve miles up the river from Alcalde.
15. Chalifount, not identified, but probably the same as Jean Baptiste Charlefour
(also found as Charleyfoe).
16. The famous Carlos Beaubien, one of the three judges appointed by General
Kearny in September 1846. That he ran a hotel in Taoe is not so well known, but
it is said not to have been unusual for one who married in Taos to start a hotel there
to look after his "in-laws."
200 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
CHAPTER III
Morning came and having- rested, although not very
comfortably, I crawled out of the straw stack; the
mountain air was chilly but I was young and warmly
dressed. My breakfast consisted of the bread left over from
the night before and some cold water ; however, this did not
dampen my spirits, for I was determined to enlist and make
the most of it.
The enlistment was for two months. Being the only
one who had any amount of education, I was made an
Orderly Sergeant of the Company. There was no other
man in the Company that could either read or write Spanish
or English. The Spanish was new to me but in a few days
I began to learn. I had to perform the duties of Commis-
sary Sergeant as well, which duties were to receive and
distribute the rations. This company was being re-enlisted,
having just completed a six months period. After getting
everything in running condition I drew the first month's
rations for the Company. I was informed by the Captain
and Lieutenants that they were to claim three rations each
and the Sergeants were to claim two rations each. This
placed me in a predicament; I went at once and consulted
Doctor Wirts, Military Surgeon,17 who had assisted me in
making my muster-rolls. Through his advice I performed
my duty to the men and refused to issue any rations to the
Captain and his Lieutenants, confining the proper amount
of rations to the Sergeants. They were much disgusted with
this rule and became a little hostile in their attitude towards
me.
A small detachment under a Lieutenant was sent to
Rayado,18 and the bulk of the Company was sent to Rio
Colorado19 to protect that settlement from the Utes and
17. Horace Raquet Wirtz, native of Pennsylvania, was appointed an assistant
surgeon Dec. 5, 1846. Later he distinguished himself in the Civil War, and died in
January 1874.
18. Rayado, 40 miles east of Taos, and Rio Colorado (Red River), 30 miles north
of Taos, were two points of the military frontier which was being established in
1850 for protection of the settlements and policing of the Territory. See New Mexico
Historical Review, ix, 262-263.
19. Not to be confused, of course, with the great Colorado of the west; nor with
the Red River of Natchitoches, already mentioned as sometimes confused with the
Canadian River. This "Rio Colorado" today goes by the English name "Red River."
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 201
Apaches. While conferring with Doctor Wirts as to how
to issue the supplies to the soldiers, he suggested that they
be issued on the basis of every ten days. This was not satis-
factory because on the seventh day the men were out of
food. If I had not retained the rations for a non-existing
laundress and two men in the guard house I would have been
in difficulties ; however, with this extra supply I managed to
have sufficient food for the two days.
After this experience I issued only five days* rations and
with-held the candles, which I exchanged with the people
in the settlement for vegetables. However, the soldiers were
up all times of the night gambling and, as necessity is the
Mother-of-Invention developed thru need, the men substi-
tuted pine-knots, which served the purpose just as well.
We were stationed at a little Mexican town on the banks
of the river. The natives had small farms to supply their
needs. Their flocks of sheep and goats grazed on the hill-
sides under the care of a herder. The cattle and horses
roamed nearby the settlement, grazing. It was in Rio
Colorado that I met La Port,20 a Canadian-Frenchman, who
had settled here. He had discovered this place after travel-
ing over the greater part of North America. His first visit
to me was in the form of a complaint. The Company Horse
Guard had gone to sleep and allowed the animals to break
into a corn field, and then refused to pay the damages done.
I advised Mr. La Port that I would look into the matter at
once and that night, near midnight, I called on the guards
and found them all asleep with their muskets stacked. I
returned to La Port's house and requested his two sons to
help me. We carried all the muskets to La Port's house ; the
next morning the men came in with the horses, and, as the
Captains and Lieutenants were still in bed, I took charge.
The men were dreadfully embarrassed without their guns.
It was here that I ordered them to follow me. At La Port's
house I informed them that their guns would be returned to
them as soon as they settled for the damage done by the
20. La Port, another Frenchman, not known outside of these notes. If there has
been a misreading, he may be the same as Francis, Choteau, or Antonio "Laforet."
all of Taos County in 1850.
202 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
Company's horses. They each gave an order to settle for
their portion of the damage. This had the desired effect,
and from that time on the horses were properly cared for.
Before leaving Taos I had drawn a month's rations for
the Company, but I was short some sheep. I had tried to get
the balance of the order but to no avail. Fresh meat was
one of the essentials I wanted to issue to the men. One day
I complained to our Captain and as he was going to Taos
he invited me to go with him and invited me to stay at his
house. The next day I went to the Commissary Officer and
made my complaint. I told him that I had received mutton
at full weight and he advised me that according to regula-
tions mutton was inferior to beef and that I should make a
reduction of 20 to 25 per cent in receiving fresh meat. He
gave me a letter to the Contractor to furnish 20 per cent
additional mutton as beef, when supplying the Company
with provisions. My Captain was a friend of the Contractor
who furnished the fresh meat. On my way to carry this
letter given me by the Commissary Officer, I chanced to
meet the Captain, who had already been informed of my
having complained regarding the supply of animals fur-
nished for fresh meat. He was provoked and advised me
that if I pressed the Contractor I would find myself in the
guard house. After this intimidation I went to see Doctor
Wirts, who advised me to carry out my original plan and
keep the men supplied with the food they were entitled to,
and referred me to Colonel Beall, stating that if my Captain
put me in the guard house the Colonel would have me re-
leased at once. So I continued on to the Contractor and had
it out with him. He offered to give me a percentage of all
I could save for him, but I felt the men were entitled to all
they could get and was going to do my utmost to see that they
did.
I returned to Rio Colorado and continued my duty until
the end of the month when I again had to return to Taos
for more rations for my Company. At this time news of the
murder of a party of travelers reached us. The outstanding
feature was that Mr. White had been murdered, together
with several other men, and Mrs. White, her child and negro
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 203
nurse had been stolen by the Apache Indians in a raid they
made on a portion of the wagon train.21
My Company was ordered to be ready for a campaign
against the depraving [depredating] Utes and Apache In-
dians, who had been responsible for many a murder. Before
I left Taos, a rider was sent post-haste with a dispatch to
have the Company move.
Major Greer,22 in command of a Company of regular
dragoons, was placed in charge of the expedition. Our Com-
pany was in charge of Captain Jose Maria Valdez.23 Before
leaving Taos I requested Major Greer to furnish me with
a gun, as my private rifle had been left at Rio Colorado. He
told me that a saber was enough for me, at the time, and as
soon as we started action he would furnish me with a gun
used by one of the artillery men. In the command we had
two six-pounders. The volunteers left Taos on the first of
November.
We encamped six or seven miles from Taos. The Cap-
tain and Lieutenants stayed in town that night, so the com-
mand of the Company was put in my care, and I was in-
structed to camp at the first good suitable place, which I did.
That night, as our camp was in the mountains, our
horse guards had to shoot several times to keep a pack of
wolves away, as they were plentiful and dangerous to our
stock. The third night we arrived at a small settlement
named Reyado, where L. B. Maxwell,24 who was owner of
most all the village, resided. Here we remained until we
21. This tragedy of the Santa Fe Trail occurred at Point of Rocks in October
1849. First word of it to reach Santa Fe was during the night of October 29. See
Annie H. Abel (ed. ), The Official Correspondence of James S. Calhoun, 63 and
passim. Calhoun, as superintendent of Indian Affairs in New Mexico, was responsible
to the Department of the Interior; Col. John Munroe (who had just succeeded Col.
J. M. Washington as civil-military governor) was responsible to the War Department.
One value of the Kronig notes is that they take us behind the scenes and we see
the military wheels go around.
22. William Nicholson Grier, native of Pennsylvania, graduated from West Point
in 1831 and was assigned to the U. S. Dragoons. By August 1846 he had been pro-
moted to a captaincy ; he was made a major in April 1861. But he had been bre-
vetted major in March 1848 for gallantry in the battle of Santa Cruz de Rosales, —
and this probably explains Kronig's use of the title here. That fact is hardly consonant
with the part he plays in the ensuing campaign.
23. Probably a native of the Taos valley. We have his name as a grand juror
there in 1847 ; and as an officer during the Civil War.
24. Lucien B. Maxwell, son-in-law of Judge Carlos Beaubien (note 16).
204 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
were joined later by the detachment Company. At this
point we were met by our guides, Kit Carson, Juaquin
Lerout,25 Robert Fisher and Jesus Silva. From here we
started pursuing the band of Indians who had murdered
the White party.
It took us several days before we reached the point
where, on a small creek, the murder took place. We fol-
lowed the trail of the Indians by small bits of cloth and
clothing found on the tree branches and underbrush. It
was a hard trail to follow as they scattered in every direc-
tion. The trail would not be plain for miles, but towards
evening would become plainer, as quite evidently the Indians
seemed to join in making camp. However, the next morning,
after following their trail but a short distance, the same
moves were repeated, but we were able to keep on their
trail. In a few days the trail became very plain and the
Commanding Officer ordered that we provide ourselves
with bread for 8 days, as no fires would be built during
that time.
The regulars were provided with cooking utensils, but
we poor volunteers had only a few pans in which our men
fried their tortillas in brown grease; so after working
faithfully all night, we only had a limited amount of bread
on hand.
The third day found us volunteers without bread. We
appealed to our Captain for permission to make bread in
the day time by a fire made of dry twigs, which would
make no smoke, but our request was sternly refused. Flour,
stirred in water, was our only substitute.
On the 16th of the month, a full two hours before sun-
down, we found the abandoned Indian camp with some of
the cottonwood sticks still smoldering in the ashes of their
fire. Captain Valdez sent me at once to Major Greer with
a request that he give us two fast horses on which to mount
a couple of our best men, familiar with the country, to scout
25. This scout was of French origin, and his name correctly was Antoine Leroux,
but he was often called "Antonio" and, for some reason (as here), "Joaquin." The
definite statement that these four men as guides joined them here differs from the
usual account.
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 205
ahead. But Major Greer, seeing, at the moment, no advan-
tage to be gained, refused.
CHAPTER IV
It was about ten minutes before sundown; the Major
changed his mind and sent two good horses to our camp.
The Captain ordered two of our most experienced volunteers
to mount at once and sent them ahead, but it was too late
in the afternoon for them to accomplish anything. The
darkness came suddenly. The Company camped in a grove
of tall, cottonwood trees with many of the dead leaves still
hanging to the branches, which made a very good screen;
the Major, feeling that the Indians could not see us, gave
his permission to have fires built. However, the light re-
flected high into the sky and we were very fortunate that
the Indians did not see us.
When day came we were rested and eager to get started.
Our first order was to mount, and followed the broad trail
left by the Indians. All former precautions had been elimi-
nated. The Company started on a trot and kept up this
pace until we were in site of some Indian horses, grazing
on the hills above their camp. This, of course, was a give-
away as to the location of their camp, which we found near
the bank of Red River.26
The Regulars, being better mounted than my Company,
were ahead of us. They charged the village but halted on
the decline of a hill leading to the camp when a bullet, fired
by an Indian, struck the chest of our Commander, leaving
a red mark without rupturing the skin. Major Greer claimed
that his life was saved by a pair of buckskin gauntlet gloves
being stuck under his shirt while not being worn. The bullet
force had been lessened by the impact on the gloves.
At this time and during the confusion in which the
Regulars were stopped, the Orderly Sergeant of the Com-
pany rode up to the Major, throwing down his carbine and
saber, saying that he had no use for the tools of war if he
was not allowed to use them while in sight of one of his
country women who had been murdered by the Indians.
26. The Canadian River is meant.
206 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
The story is told that the Major pacified this soldier and
did not reprimand him. The Major felt that he was to blame
for allowing a slight scratch to stop his Company.
The volunteers followed as fast as their tired animals
would permit. As we reached the top of the hill we were
ordered to dismount, march down the hill and get between
the Indians and the bulk of the horses. Being an Orderly
Sergeant, I did not wish to be the last one, so I had to go
into the skirmish on foot with nothing more than a Toledo
blade. It was a very good one but not sufficient to fight a
mounted Indian. Our Captain, seeing my predicament, gave
me his gun. He had a brace of pistols as well. This inspired
a new confidence, and it was my first time under fire.
The Indians retreated slowly but kept up the skirmish-
ing in order that their families would have time to escape.
All at once we were ordered to return to our horses, to get
out of range of two cannons that had just arrived and
were being set up to shoot. A few shots of grape and canis-
ter were fired without doing the Indians any harm except
probably frightening them.
The Indians, knowing their families were a safe dis-
tance ahead, broke into a run. The Regulars and Volunteers
pursued them, but were soon outdistanced and the Indians
escaped.
We passed near the dead body of Mrs. White, leaning
forward against some bushes. She was running toward us
when shot and the arrow that took her life, struck at her
back, seemed to have passed through her heart. It was a
pitiful sight to see an American woman so ruthlessly killed
by these heartless savages. They still had her baby and the
negro nurse.
While in pursuit, I saw Bob Fisher, one of the scouts,
shoot an Indian, seeing him fall, but when he returned after
the battle, this Indian had disappeared. Doctor Reed27 killed
an Indian that had shot one of the servants in the hip with
an arrow. Besides the two young Indian children, no other
captives were taken. However, we were fortunate in cap-
turing about 200 Indian horses and the large part of their
27. Doctor Reed is not identified.
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 207
camp equipment. This was the end of our brilliant cam-
paign.
We buried Mrs. White near the spot where she was
killed, leveling" the ground and then building a big fire over
the freshly disturbed earth.
We camped in a small grove with a rivulet running
through it. The date was November 22nd, 1849. The Com-
pany rested through the day and that night, about eight
o'clock, we were ordered to break camp and start toward
Taos. It was a very dark and cloudy night; to the human
eye the trails were not distinguishable and, to cap the climax,
it 'began to snow about two hours after we started on the
trail. We continued our march until after midnight, and
having lost our direction, the Captain ordered us to make
camp out on the open prairie. Twelve men were detailed
to guard the horses. The storm was heavy and the horses
began to drift with it. The guards were more fortunate
than we, for the animals drifted into a canyon in which
the men found fire wood and protection from the wind,
which had began to blow. They also killed a fat colt and
were well provided for during the storm.
The pilfering of the Indian camp fell to the Volunteers,
which was very fortunate indeed, for without the extra
robes found, three-fourths of the Company would have per-
ished from cold and exposure. The Regular soldiers were
well equipped for such weather.
The storm became more severe as time went on. I
made myself as comfortable as possible, pulling off my
boots, placing them on the ground under my head with
my coat to make a pillow ; I then spread two large buffalo
robes on the ground, laping them over so that I would be
completely covered, head and all. It was just a short while
until I was disturbed. One of the Lieutenants had staked
a horse too close to me and the storm became more severe
he broke loose to drift with it, and as he did he ran over
my legs, bruising me considerably. I covered back up after
this to escape the storm and did not show my face again
until after noon. I had become tired from laying in such
a position and as I raised the cover to get a look at the
208 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
outside world, a whiff of wind caught the robes and stripped
me, and in no time my warm nest was covered with snow.
I got up and looked around. The wind was so strong that
I could hardly stand, much less walk against it. I had to
put my hand over my mouth in order to breath. Through
the snow I saw a tent dimly outlined. Here I felt I could
find covering from the elements. I asked permission to enter,
but the owner said there were already 23 persons inside
and no room for anyone else. I squatted down near the
tent, out of the wind. My feet were cold and I was beginning
to feel that I did not care if I was ever warm or cold again ;
I was beginning to freeze to death ; I wanted to sleep — th'at
was all. Doctor Reed, thanks to him, gave me room and sat
on my feet in an effort to warm them. He also gave me a
blanket to put over my back, as the fine snow driven by
the wind was coming through the heavy canvas of the tent.
It was twelve hours after I had come out from under
my covers before the storm let up, and when it did, a light
fog settled down over everything. During all this time I
had not eaten anything except a dozen pinon nuts, but I
was no worse off than the rest of the Company. We could
see just a few hundred feet around us on account of the
fog; so we set to work building fires with bark saddles and
other wood material near at hand. It was a sure thing that
now we would have to have something to eat before long.
The fog lifted and as our fires had just began to burn we
could see a fine strip of timber about a half-mile away. I
dug around for my boots and coat, and with the rest of
the men, ran for the timber. In just a short time we had
our fires blazing and a hot meal ready. The horse guards
returned, but they were not hungry ; they had cooked steaks
cut from the colt they killed.
My friend, Viereck, had for some cause left his bed
and when the wind blew his cover away, seeing a large
snow drift, seemed to think he could find shelter there; he
dug down into the snow and found a robe and blanket and
proceeded to get under them, but to his great surprise he
was lying on top of a human being, who cursed and ordered
him off. Our Captain used some very abusive language but
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 209
Viereck was not to be moved, once he found comfort and
protection from the storm. A good many years later, when
I met the Captain, this incident afforded us quite a laugh.
We were not very fortunate, for out of the 260 horses
and 40 pack mules that we started with from our last camp,
we had only sufficient animals to mount the Company, and
probably six or eight in reserve. We felt lucky, indeed, that
we, ourselves, came out alive.
During the day we moved on and that night camped
near the junction of the Mora and Sapello Rivers. On the
following day we reached La Junta, a small settlement,28
at which point we were able to replenish our food supply.
From this point we followed the Mora River up to La
Cueva where we made camp in a large cave; by noon the
next day we reached the town of Mora, one of the largest
Mexican settlements in northern New Mexico. At this point
we drew additional fresh meats and other foods and settled
down for a couple of days rest, which we were badly in
need of, as we had been battling the driving snow and drifts
for three days. Our trip over the mountains required all
the skill we had to march through the deep snow, but we
finally reached Taos.
The next day, December 3, 1849, a cold, cloudy, bleak
winter-day, we were mustered out. However, before we
were dismissed for the last time, I advised the Captain that
I would like to talk to the Company. I had still three days'
rations for each and everyone. I made my little speech
and was greeted by a remark from a soldier in the front
line, as follows : "You have been fair with us so I will give
you my share of the rations." Before I had a chance to say
anything, the whole Company followed suit. My efforts
were of no avail to trying to make them take their rations.
They each came to me and thanked me again, which, in
itself, was sufficient reward for my efforts to see that they
were treated fairly. Through the companionship of these
few months many a friendship developed and lasted through
the long years of my life.
28. La Junta was evidently in the Mora valley, as was also La Cueva, below.
They were heading westward to cross the mountains and drop down into the Taos
valley.
210 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
The Regulars left during the snow storm and became
lost ; they suffered terribly ; a negro, serving one of the of-
ficers, became lost and was never seen again. However, they
finally reached Las Vegas, where they stayed until the storm
was over.
While loafing around Taos, a Mr. Casey, clerk in one
of the military offices, requested that I copy the report of
the expedition, as he was anxious to go to a dance or ball
(fandango) . I copied it and to my surprise I read of the
wonders that we had performed. The report went on to
say that there were fifty-two Indians killed, and the balance
of two tribes frozen to death in the snow storm.29 While
at work on the report, Colonel Beall stepped into the office
and asked what I thought of it. I replied that according
to the report, our success had been a very brilliant one ; to
this he remarked "that it was paper talk."
CHAPTER V
It was beginning to get colder and I felt that I needed
a place to stay through the cold months of the year. As I
had an invitation to visit La Port, at Rio Colorado, I saddled
my horse, packing all the rations on a pack animal, and
headed for this point. The distance seemed short compared
to what it did when I first made the trip. I was greeted
with all the courtesy that anyone could expect. Here I was
entertained by his family. La Port's two sons and son-in-
law were eager to go on a hunt. They were not particular
as to the kind of game, just to return by Christmas with
some meat, to celebrate. So the hunt was planned. The
heavy snow had frozen over with the cold weather and the
crust made walking easy, but the crunching noise fright-
ened all the animals away. Christmas morning found us
five miles from the settlement with but one onion and some
bread crusts, that felt like they were frozen. We were in-
deed hungry, but having made our brags about bringing
home some game, we did not want to return without some-
thing to show.
29. Kronig's estimate of this military "report" and Colonel BeaU's comment sug-
gest that such official records may often be of dubious value.
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 211
Our fire was burning- brightly and we kept it bright
so that we would not freeze. I happened to look toward the
east and to my surprise there stood a large grey timber wolf
not a hundred yards away from us. There were three guns
aimed and fired simultaneously at the animal without a word
from any one of us. The wolf was dead and before the ani-
mal heat was out of him we were roasting him on the fire ;
the fat oozed out of the meat into the flame while roasting.
I was rather timid about eating it, but noticing that my two
companions seemed to be enjoying their portion, I layed into
it, and after tasting it ate as ravenously as they did. It
seemed to me that the taste was similar to a fat mutton.
This encouraged us and we strolled off again through
the hard and frozen snow and toward evening we found
a turkey roost. It was no time at all until we had a half
dozen large turkeys; so we headed back toward town, ar-
riving there just in time to celebrate the evening of Christ-
mas Day. However, the turkeys were cooked the next day.
and I can truthfully say I never enjoyed a dinner more
than that one.
This incident gave me an idea; perhaps I could sell
the game I killed in Taos. My first kill was a large, black-
tail doe ; after properly bleeding and cleaning her I securely
tied her on my pack saddle, going into Taos, where I sold
the animal for four dollars. This kind of employment was
going to be very nice except for the fact I was forced to
go thirty miles to my hunting grounds. While in the store
making some small purchases and thinking of this venture
I was embarked upon, I again met Colonel Beall, who, greet-
ing me in a friendly manner, inquired as to what I was
doing for a living. I informed him that I had just made
$4.00 from the sale of a deer that I had brought in and
I was just getting ready to start out again. It would prob-
ably take me three days to kill another deer and return to
Taos. The Colonel asked me how much I expected to make
a month and I replied that I thought I could make about
$30.00. He looked at me and thought a minute, then said :
"You're just the man I want." He looked at me again and
said : "Yes, you are. I can offer you more money than you
212 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
are making, if you will agree to perform a mission for me."
Before I could reply, he said: "Would you like to earn the
$5.00 a day I mentioned, even though the mission is a very
dangerous one?" I replied, "For $5.00 a day I will go any-
where." Then he came out with the story.
The Colonel had been ordered to make every possible
effort to recover the baby stolen from the White family.
He had heard many rumors that the child was still in the
hands of the Indians and was being well cared for, and
was taking this way of tracing down the stories. He realized,
of course, that many times rumors were just false hopes,
but to save the baby's life a chance could be taken.
My instructions from the Colonel were to go to the
tribe of Indians he designated and tell them that the Great
White Father wanted them to come into Taos and make
peace, and at the same time find out all I could about the
baby and negro nurse. I was also to impress upon them
that they would be properly treated.
My former friend and room-mate, Schlesinger, had not
been able to obtain any employment since he was mustered
out of the Volunteers, so I was able to ma^ke an agreement
with him to go with me. I was to pay him One Dollar a
day for his services. I borrowed two good horses from my
former teacher.30 One of the animals, a fine Kentucky mare,
well acclimated, was claimed by Schlesinger for his mount
on the trip ; the other, a chestnut sorrel, was a rather vicious
animal from California. Schlesinger's horse was gentle, but
mine was of such a disposition that I was thrown three
times before I was able to stick to the saddle. The snow
was deep and so the falls caused no ill effects. Before long
we were off on our trip.
CHAPTER VI
Our first day was over a trodden snow pathway and
we managed to reach Rio Colorado that evening. The snow
covered hills and valleys and delayed our travel somewhat,
but we were able to make the trip in fair time.
30. Evidently the Mr. Mink, earlier mentioned as located at Plaza Alcalde. Sec
note 13.
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 213
At Rio Colorado, the first man that I saw was La Port,
and after a cordial invitation we went to his house for the
night. I explained to him regarding my new job. He was
amazed that the Commanding Officer, Colonel Beall, would
send two green-horns out on such a mission, and he tried
to persuade me not to go, saying that if I went it would
be the last he would see of me. However, no amount of
argument would turn me from the commission that I had
accepted and principally for the $5.00 a day. La Port's
argument was that the Utes or Apaches would finally get
me and that would be the end.
Seeing that I was determined to go on, he gave me
the advice much as a father would give his son. Proposing
peace to the Utes, he felt, was just a matter of getting
some men into a trap and being killed. Any news of this
kind generally came to him first before going to the Colonel
at Taos. Having lived in this country for many years he
knew conditions and knew where the Utes could be found,
also knew their customs as well as the rest of the plains
and mountains Indians. He led me to the roof of his house
and pointed out the Sierra Blanca, telling me to keep to
the right of it and follow up the Saint Louis Valley,31 where
I could no doubt find the tribes of Indians I was looking for.
We provided ourselves with provisions for ten days,
a little corn for the horses, and started out on our expedition.
The snow was knee deep on the horses and the going was
tough. After traveling all day, we reached a small curve
in the river known as El Cervo de los Utahs, which was
about fifteen miles from our starting point.
Then came the problem of the night's rest. We man-
aged to find a place to camp. On the south side was a bare
piece of wind-swept ground, which was covered with a fine
growth of grass, suitable for grazing our horses for the
night. The problem of water for ourselves and the horses
was solved by heating rocks and putting them in a hole
filled with snow ; after which we put out the fire, as we did
31. This was, of course, the well-known San Luis valley. All of it north of 37°
north latitude and also Sierra BJanca lay in the strip which was taken from New
Mexico when Colorado was created a Territory in 1861.
214 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
not want the Indians to know that we were on our way to
see them, preferring to take them by surprise. The country
was so located that a light could be seen for about 20 miles
under the right conditions. The night was cold and I was
miserable and could hardly sleep. However, at daybreak
I again kindled the fire and we cooked our breakfast and
continued on our way.
The next day we traveled until evening, finally stopping
at a small stream flowing west toward the Rio Bravo or
Rio Grande. The weather was so cold that we could find
no place where the water was flowing and as we tried to
break the ice found that it was frozen solid. So we again
had to repeat melting the snow to make water for our horses
to drink. We again slept or tried to sleep through the night
without a fire. I was not bothered so much, as I seemed to
be getting used to the severe weather ; however, I was very
cold. The night passed and we continued northward on our
journey.
It was the third. About noon, traveling slowly through
the snow, my companion sighted what we assumed to be
a band of men riding toward us ; there seemed to be at least
20 in number and they appeared ,to be coming fast. About
this time we came upon an abandoned corral, probably used
by the Indians or Mexicans to hold their sheep for a few
days, while they camped in this locality. It was located near
some high rocks at the base of the hills and built fairly
high, presumably to protect their animals from wolves. The
horses kept coming toward us and we made ready to protect
ourselves. Dismounting we tied our horses behind some
small cedar trees on the hill-side of this covering. We then
stationed ourselves behind the wall with our guns, ready
to sell our lives at a cost, if necessary. We were blinded to
a certain extent by the snow, and our vision was not too
good; however, we watched the animals come nearer and
nearer, getting ready to fire the moment the supposed enemy
came close enough. We felt sure that in this country no
band of men would be running around except Indians. The
closer they came, the surer I was that they were Indians;
all at once they turned to the left, about a quarter of a mile,
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 215
and a profile view was broadside to us; we could see that
they were only a band of wild horses. We both drew a big
sigh of relief.
That night we made our camp near Fort Garland.32
The weather had moderated some and we were more com-
fortable. At this point our camp afforded us with a little
more comfort, but we continued to put out our fires at night.
The succeeding nights of camping were uneventful. We
traveled on through the snow, passing over the mountains
at Mosio Pass.33 After a dreary seven day's travel we found
a fresh trail in the snow. It was the first sign of a human
being since we left Rio Colorado. After traveling for about
a mile, we could see the Indian village along a small stream.
We could see their horses along the water's edge among
the willows a good mile away from the village.
Among the Indian tribes of the plains and mountains
there is a mutual agreement that once the enemy gets into
camp, the Indians will feed and shelter them, but when
they leave the camp their obligation is over, and they will
kill them.
Some of the Indians on foot around their camp saw
us and ran for their horses, but we whipped our tired
animals to make them run faster and reached camp first,
diving into the first lodge we came to, the Indians right
behind us. However, we were now safe. We carried our
guns and ammunition with us for protection; in case we
were attacked we could fight our way out or sell ourselves
at a dear price.
Our reception was rather cold and not even gifts of
tobacco were accepted. Now that we were in the camp, the
Indians seemed to follow their rule not to molest us. I went
out to see if I could find their Chief (Chico Belasquez). I
had heard it said that when he was a boy he had lived
with the Mexicans and herded sheep for them and could
speak very well. He had probably been a captive. The first
32. This is one of the anachronisms which show that Kronig was writing from
memory rather than from contemporary notes. Fort Garland was on Ute Creek in
Costilla County, Colorado, but it was not established until 1858, replacing the earlier
Fort Massachusetts (1852) on the same creek but six miles further north.
33. Possibly Mosca Pass is meant, which was to the north of Sierra Blanca.
216 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
Indian I asked refused to answer me and I had some dif-
ficulty in finding him, but after visiting all the lodges I
finally succeeded. The message Colonel Beall had given
me was delivered to him, but the Chief would give me no
answer. I noticed that he ordered twenty or thirty of the
younger men out on the trail in all directions. Long after
dark they returned and it was then that the Chief spoke
his first word to me. He told me he thought we were just
spies and had lost our way ; that he wanted to assure him-
self we were just conveying a message to him. Receiving
word from his scouts that they found only two tracks for
a long distance, he felt we told him the truth.
Food was ordered by him at once and the squaws
brought forth boiled buffalo meat, with the hair still stick-
ing to it, but if a hungry man was going to let something
Hke this stop his eating in a place like this, he would starve
to death. So I ate the meat, and with relish. The hair stick-
ing on the meat went down just as the rest of it did. The
separating of the hair would have taken time and my
stomach would not stand the wait.
After we had consumed the food, the Chief called all
his sub-chiefs and influential men into the lodge where we
were and we all squatted around the fire, built in the center
of the room. There was a large opening through the roof
in which the smoke escaped. After we were all seated the
Chief asked me for some tobacco. I produced a supply
which was composed of fine-cut, mixed with dry bark of
the red willow. During my last run for the lodge I had
lost my pipe and to complete the smoke of peace it was
necessary to have a pipe. I told the Council that I had lost
my pipe. Well, the Indians were not to be out-done by any-
one, so one of them manufactured a pipe out of reed or
cane and we were ready to proceed with our meeting. The
pipe was passed to me but I declined to smoke it as I knew
the tobacco was of a poor kind, having purchased it as an
article to trade with, and having lost my personal tobacco
at the time I lost my pipe. The Chief was rather indignant,
pointing out to me that my intentions were not good. I
apologized to him, telling the Council that I did not under-
Ubrarj
Kansas City,
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 217
stand their custom, that I would be glad to smoke the Pipe
of Peace with them, and after that, as many times as the
pipe was passed, I took the necessary whiffs and acted as
though I liked it. I had to admit the tobacco was vile and
felt that I was being justly punished for trying to pass
such stuff off on the unsuspecting Indians. After the pipe
was passed around several times, the Chief asked me for
my credentials. The Colonel had not given me any papers
and for the moment I was lost; then the happy thought,
to show my Quartermaster Department order, came to me ;
this stated that I was to receive five dollars a day for the
time I was absent from Taos on the trip to the Ute Indian
camp. I handed it to the Chief and he to the Indian next
to him and so it went around the Council, finally returning
to me; it seemed to be a satisfactory answer. The Chief
conversed in Ute language, which I did not understand.
The Council kept up the conversation for a long time and
out of the clear sky the Chief said, "Tell your Chief that
we will come to Taos as soon as the grass is long enough
so that it will keep the horses strong; also, that we will
kill no more Americans and Mexicans." From all I have
been able to learn, that promise was kept. The Chief then
told me that the White, baby had died, also that the negro
nurse was dead.
After the pact was made, my companion and myself
had the freedom of the camp and the Chief asked me to
stay in his lodge as his special guest. I did not quite see
the reason for this, but later caught on, for the Chief asked
me to play a game of "Cammita," a Mexican and Indian
game. The method of playing was using four hollow canes
about six inches long. A piece of copper is placed in one
of the canes and the game consisted of guessing which cane
the copper was in. It was something like the shell game,
except they were not sufficiently advanced to trick the per-
son guessing. It was rather easy for me to guess where
the Chief placed the copper, and I was rather reluctant in
allowing him to win. But I purposely made blunder after
blunder especially to please him, and to say the least, it
delighted my host.
218 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
CHAPTER VII
We had a fair supply of ammunition and I was asked
to give it to the Indians but I refused, explaining to the
Chiefs that I had to account and render a statement for
everything used on the trip when I returned to Taos. This
must have made a good impression on these savages as I
was frequently away from my equipment and nothing was
disturbed. My best saddle and other supplies were left in
the lodge untouched.
Each night I remained with the Chief and others play-
ing "Cammita." I was becoming weary of the game, but
it pleased them and I felt I was making friends. One night
while playing, I asked the Chief regarding certain orna-
ments he was wearing on his leggins. He pointed to a cluster
hanging to one leggin, saying, "These are Mexican finger-
nails," then pointing to another cluster, "These are Ameri-
can fingernails, and these," the last cluster, "are Negro
fingernails." It was here that I said a silent prayer of thank-
fulness for myself and companion for reaching the lodge
ahead of these fierce people. Our fingernails might have
been added to those leggins.
Chief Belasquez was a very inquisitive devil; seeing
that my language was not expressed like the Americans
he had been used to, and neither was it like the Mexicans,
he asked me where I came from. To explain, I drew a map
of the world on the sand in his lodge, going into as much
detail as I possibly could, and trying to answer his questions
as comprehensively as possible. He had heard of the ocean
and was interested in knowing how long it took me to cross
the big water. After a long session of describing my trip
across the country he suddenly asked me how gun powder
was made. Not having a ready reply, I answered that it grew
like wheat. He put his hand to his mouth giving me to
understand that he was surprised. For a little while he
remained silent and then said : "Did you notice three moun-
tains in the distance when you were running to the village?"
I responded in the affirmative that I had clearly noticed
these three mountains. "Then it's a pity you did not get
here a few hours sooner because God was in camp and
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 219
he took the mountain on the left side, placing it on top of
the mountain in the center and then he took the mountain
on the right side and placed it on top of the other two, and
they reached up into heaven." I was never able to figure
out just why he told me this story unless it was to let me
know that I was lying to him about the making of gun
powder.
A war party came in from somewhere, bringing three
scalps of some hunters they had surprised. These Arapa-
ghoe Indians34 had been asleep when this Ute party came
upon them, killing and scalping them as they slept. Becom-
ing interested as to how the murder happened, I again
talked to the Chief, who very graciously gave me the details.
The Utes were hunting over the mountains near the present
Canyon City,35 when they noticed a small fire burning under
some trees. The three Arapaghoes slept nearby with part
of a carcass of a deer. They apparently had been hungry
a long time and when the deer was killed they proceeded
to gorge themselves until their bellies were tight as drums
and, like an animal, they could not keep their eyes opened.
It was too bad for them, as they never opened their eyes
again. The Utes killed them on the spot, scalping them
and leaving their puffed bodies for the wolves and cayotes
to devour. However, they took the remains of the deer
carcass. They were, successful themselves in the hunt, and
after killing all the game they could carry, returned to
camp.
By evening the scalp dance was in progress. A large
section of ground had been cleared of snow. Piles of wood
were brought in and as soon as the skies darkened, the
dance began. This was the Squaws' chance, as only women
participated in the dance of death. The fires caused wierd
shadows over the snow but the squaws danced on; they
would spit on the scalps and their facial expressions were
34. This spelling of Arapaho is not listed by Hodge, Handbook of American In-
dians, I, 72-74. From 1840 the Arapaho were at peace "with the Sioux, Kiowa, and
Comanche but were always at war with the Shoshoni, Ute, and Pawnee until they
were confined upon reservations."
35. Another indication of when Kronig was writing. Canon City had its origin
not before 1859 or early 1860.
220 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
of hate for their enemy. The scalps were then thrown on
the ground and the squaws trampled them with their moc-
casined feet. Gruesome as it was, we spent a thrilling eve-
ning but were very depressed to think that the whole pro-
gram was brought about by the hunters bringing in the
scalps of the unsuspecting and unfortunate Red men. I
was mighty thankful that I was not a source for their
expression of vengeance.
Our horses had been turned loose so that they could
recuperate from the strenuous riding and travel we had
given them. Our invitation to stay with this tribe was
genuine and we did stay, but the food was very poor ; they
had lost nearly all their belongings in the fights on the Cana-
dian or Red River, followed by the severe snow storms
earlier described. It was amusing for me to think that
recently I had been with an armed force fighting these
poor savages, and now I was practically breaking bread
with them.
Our visit was concluded and we made ready to return
to Taos. Chief Belasquez expressed sorrow that I was to
leave, that he could not play Cammita with me any more,
and that he had enjoyed our visit. Our horses were brought
in, saddled for us and a good supply of meat was given us
for our return trip; and to my surprise, we were given an
escort of eight mounted Indians to protect us from the
Apaches. The return trip was uneventful and when our
party reached a point about 35 miles from Rio Colorado
the escort left us, telling us to ride to the settlement with-
out a stop, as it was very dangerous with the Apaches
loose. About noon the next day we reached Rio Colorado.
My companion and I rode into the village to La Port's house,
where the astonished family gave us our usual welcome.
La Port said that he never expected to see us alive again,
as we had been most daring. We rested that afternoon and
night, and the next day were on our way to Taos.
Soon after our arrival, I called on Colonel Beall to
give him Chief Belasquez's answer. He invited me in and
poured a glass of wine for me. He was very kind and
inquired into the condition of the trail and after I had
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 221
recited the whole adventure he said, "I haven't slept a
night since you left. I do not know what I was thinking
about to have sent you on such a mission. The job was
done better than I could have done it myself and I thank
God that you are back and unharmed." When I claimed
my pay for the trip he put me off from day to day; after
a while he did give me a Quartermaster Order for the pay
for the entire time, even the time I had been waiting in
Taos to collect it. When I got the money, I felt like a million-
aire; however I did not waste it as I had had enough of
gambling and loaning money.
A short time later, the Colonel came to me telling me
that he had another job that I could do for him. I was to
be what he called an "undercover man." In the town of
Rio Colorado there was a Mexican woman married to an
Apache Indian. He had been shot in the knee and was of
very little use on a horse and could no longer fight; but
the Colonel thought that he was giving the tribes informa-
tion regarding the movement of the troops. I obtained a
little cabin in the vicinity of the Indian's home and pro-
ceeded to sit and watch to see if he had any night visitors
from his people. I sat up a month while this Indian slept.
Finally I made a trip to Taos and informed Colonel Beall
that the Indian was not receiving visitors and that he did
not seem to be in contact with the tribes at all. I was paid
off and collected at the rate of twenty-five dollars a month,
which was big wages in those times.
At the Quatermaster's office I met Mr. Quinn,36 a beef
contractor, and the gentleman with whom I had words re-
garding the furnishing of the proper amount of meat to
the Volunteers ; I was about to pass him by when he spoke.
I was under the impression that he would not be friendly
36. Without doubt, this was James H. Quinn of Taos (and Santa Fe) who is
better known from his participation in Territorial affairs. From October 1846 to
August 1849 he was attorney for the southern district ; he was one of the thirteen
signers of the memorial to congress (dated Santa Fe, Oct. 14, 1848) against the Texan
boundary claims and against the introduction of slavery in New Mexico ; in 1853 he
was president of the Territorial council. Kronig adds to our knowledge as to his
business activities, supplementing the fact that in 1850 he was operating a mill and
distillery near Arroyo Hondo. Blanche Grant (When Old Trails Were New, 156, 303)
tells us that Quinn was an Irishman and a cousin of Stephen A. Douglas.
222 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
as I had refused to accept his bribe. He asked me if I wished
to establish myself in business at Rio Colorado. I told him
I did, but hardly expected to receive a proposition from him,
inasmuch as I had previously turned down his offer and
could not understand why he should now consider me. This
he explained; my former dealings with him were honest
and he wanted to deal with a man he could trust. He then
outlined his proposition. He was to furnish all the salable
goods and I was to provide myself with a store and collect
a certain percentage of the goods I sold. This sounded good
to me so I went immediately to Rio Colorado, located a store
building, prepared shelves and counters and then returned
to Taos for the merchandise. I was soon installed as a
storekeeper. I had some competition but was satisfied with
a fair profit, and in a short time had most of the business.
This village was very quiet as there was yet no mail
route established between Rio Colorado and Taos, or any
newspapers. The distance between these two towns was
only 30 miles but there were few people in this community
who could read or write, so we had to go to Taos for our
mail and reading material.
Owing to the great depth of snow in the mountains,
the Indians had been quiet; no crime had been committed
in the vicinity. They had operated on the east side of the
mountains, stealing and killing where-ever the opportunity
presented itself.
The stage coach carrying United States mail was at-
tacked near Santa Clara Springs.37 The driver and pas-
sengers were killed in a running fight. If they had not
been killed, they would no doubt have been tortured to
death, to amuse these savages. The mail sacks were scat-
tered over the prairie and many letters and papers were
blown over a large area. It was months before the papers
were all picked up; and it is probable that some of this
mail never was found. There was one letter for me from
Germany. The envelope was torn but it reached me safely.
It was from my family, written by different members, who
37. Santa Clara Springs was on the Santa Fe Trail, near Wagon Mound, 134
miles from Santa Fe.
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 223
gave me the interesting news of my home. However, I
was a little homesick for the time being, in this vast un-
settled country.
Shortly after this episode, at Rio Colorado, a little
Mexican mill, its large hoppers filled with grain, was robbed.
The mill was generally left alone at night. Horses and
cattle were now being stolen. The Indians had become so
bold as to enter right into the village.
At La Port's home one morning I was finishing break-
fast when Beaubien, nephew of the Judge,38 asked for help
to follow some Indians that had stolen twelve head of cattle
he owned. La Port's sons and myself made ready as soon
as possible and were joined by others of the village to pursue
the Indians. We expected to overtake them shortly, as the
cattle had been taken within sight of the town, and did not
consider it necessary to take any provisions with us. This
was a sad mistake, as what follows will show. We fully
expected the Indians to take the broad trail of Red River
Canyon; but to our dismay we found that they had taken
a seldom-used trail to the mountains, over which our horses
could not travel and were useless to us. It became necessary
that we follow them on foot The Indians had a start of
about one and one-half miles, and we were well on the trail
when we found a cow, killed and partly skinned ; the Indians
had only taken a part of the tenderloin. It is probable that
the cow became obstinate and so was killed.
One of our men decided to stay behind, but later
changed his mind and caught up with us before we had
traveled far. Over his shoulder he had a piece of rawhide,
used in making Moccasin soles. The Indians were kept in
sight all day and occasionally gave us a verbal abuse from
a safe distance. Night overtook us at the Costilla River.
Here the Indians outdistanced us, and we ended our pursuit.
When darkness came we kindled a fire as the weather was
quite chilly. We made up our minds we would have to do
without supper. We bedded down for the night. I was too
tired to sleep, but found a comfortable place against a rock
38. No such nephew is known from other sources.
224 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
where I could lay my tired body and rest. I dozed off for
a short time and came to life when the smell of burning
hair penetrated the air, which was soon followed by the
odor of fresh meat roasting. This brought me to my feet
and looking around I saw one of my companions eating
some of the rawhide. I asked for some and they cut it up
in small pieces for me and I swallowed it. This relieved my
aching stomach. Mr. Beaubien, a man of advancing years,
was completely broken by next morning and was unable
to walk back. We sent one of the men, best able to travel,
to town for a horse. We then made a litter and moved the
tired man down the mountains to await return of the mes-
senger on the wagon road. Here we left him comfortable,
except for hunger. We traveled six miles to a sheep ranch,
where the family had a number of goats. With their per-
mission, we filled ourselves with milk, which gave us strength
to return home.
(To be concluded)
THE SPREAD OF SPANISH HORSES IN THE
SOUTHWEST
By D. E. WORCESTER
WHERE did the Plains Indians get their horses? This
question has been the basis of much speculation and
research.1 The accounts of the early explorers and settlers
of the Southwest make the answer clear indeed. The Plains
Indians did not acquire horses through strays being lost
by Spanish expeditions, as has been suggested by some
writers. Spanish ranches — of New Mexico, Sonora, Chi-
huahua, Nueva Vizcaya, and Coahuila — supplied both the
horses and the horsemanship of the Indians of the South-
west. The use of horses spread rapidly to the north and
east, though few tribes possessed large numbers until the
18th century. The purpose of this paper is to trace briefly
the diffusion of Spanish horses in the Southwest during
the 17th century.
Ranches were begun in New Mexico around 1600.
Apache raiding on Spanish herds ensued. By 1608 the
settlers were so discouraged that they requested permission
to return to New Spain.2 It became increasingly difficult
for the missionaries to keep their Pueblo converts satisfied.
As a reward for their faith, Fray Francisco de Velasco
recommended, in 1609, succoring them with gifts of cattle,
goats, ewes, and mares.3
In 1621, the encomenderos of New Mexico were auth-
orized to use Indians as herders and teamsters.4 Thus, at
an early stage of the settling of New Mexico, converts
were allowed to use horses, in contrast to the usual Spanish
custom of prohibiting Indians from riding.
Spanish livestock became very abundant in New Mex-
ico, according to the report of Fray Alonso de Benavides, in
1630. He mentioned especially the horses, which were said
1. See Wissler, Haines, Aiton, and Denhardt.
2. Fray Lazaro de Ximenez, Mandamiento para que el gobernador de la nueva
mexico ... 6 marzo, 1608, Archive General de Indias, 58-3-16.
3. Fray Francisco de Velasco, Memorial de nueva mexico, 9 abril, 1609 Archivo
General de Indias, 59-1-5.
4. Marques del Guadalcazar, Archivo General de Indias, 58-3-18.
225
226 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
to be excellent for military purposes. Benavides estimated
that the encomenderos of Santa Fe had in their service 700
Indians; so that, including Spaniards, mestizos, and In-
dians, there were 1,000 persons in the villa. These people,
he stated, were very punctual in obedience to the governor,
and came forth with their own arms and horses whenever
required.5
A number of documents verify the abundance of live-
stock in New Mexico, while others refer to Indians pos-
sessing cattle and horses. In 1638, Fray Juan de Prada
wrote that without cattle-raising it would be difficult for
the missions to survive. He also reported a tendency on
the part of disgruntled converts to apostatize and join the
heathen tribes.6 It is impossible to determine exactly when
the Apaches began using horses otherwise than for food,
though very likely it was between 1620 and 1630 ; possibly
earlier, but certainly not later.
In 1639, the governor of New Mexico wrote:
In some doctrinas I saw they had some sheep
and cattle, but I always heard it said they were
the property of the natives themselves, and I can-
not with certainty say a thing to the contrary.7
At the same time, the cabttdo of Santa Fe wrote the vice-
roy deploring the fact that the missions had so much
livestock. It was suggested, inasmuch as the king contrib-
uted to the support of the missionaries, that their cattle be
divided among the settlers.
The same should be done with the horses that
all of them have — as many as twenty, thirty, forty
apiece — for there are many soldiers so poor that
through inability to buy horses and arms they are
incapable of serving his Majesty. In this way a
great deal of trouble would be saved the Indians,
for they are occupied in guarding the cattle and
horses . . . and the stables where they keep three
or four saddle horses very daintily, for they are
5. Alonso de Benavides, Memorial, 1630, (E. Ayer translation, Chicago, 1916), 23.
6. C. W. Hackett, ed., Historical documents relating to New Mexico, Nueva Viz-
caya, and approaches thereto. (Wash., D. C. 1926-37), iii, 111.
7. Ibid., 117.
SPREAD OF SPANISH HORSES IN THE SOUTHWEST 227
quite valuable, and are taken to be sold in New
Spain . . . The worst thing ... is that the religious
hold most of the armor for the horses, leather jack-
ets, swords, arquebuses, and pistols . . .8
By 1650, there are reports of horses being used by
Indians in conflicts with Spaniards. Apaches and Teguas
joined in an attempt to overcome the colonists, and horses
were stolen to be used in the revolt. The attempt failed,
and the horses were recovered. The Spaniards learned that
they had been delivered by the Christian Indians of Sandia
and Alameda.9
The desire of many tribes to possess horses eventually
resulted in the disappearance of livestock from around the
Spanish settlements. Though these forays were attributed
mainly to the Apaches, tribes from Texas and the Plains
participated in them. In 1672, Fray Francisco de Ayeta
declared that the province of New Mexico was totally
sacked. With the supplies which he procured for New
Mexico a few years later, Ayeta brought 1,000 horses.10
He returned to the city of Mexico to petition for more men
and arms, and for an additional 1,000 horses.11
During the Pueblo uprising of 1680, the Spaniards of
New Mexico were deprived of most of the livestock remain-
ing in their possession. Thus, in giving his reasons for
abandoning Isleta, Alonso Garcia wrote of the 120 persons
who had been killed, and of the loss of their arms, and
enough horses and cattle to sustain the Apaches for more
than four months.12 Some maestres de campo urged that a
report be made to the king so he could
make provision for a return to the reconquest,
which today is more dangerous owing to the cun-
ning and audacity of the many treacherous and
capable enemies, alike as horsemen and in the han-
dling of firearms, lances, and other weapons . . ,13
8. Hackett, op. cit., iii, 71.
9. W. W. H. Davis, The Spanish conquest of New Mexico, (Doylestown, Pa.,
1869), 282.
10. Hackett, op. cit., iii, 291.
11. Ibid., 296.
12. R. E. Twitchell, ed., Spanish archives of New Mexico, (Cedar Rapids, 1904),
ii, 15.
13. Ibid., 37.
228 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
Raiding continued after the Pueblo Revolt. Apache
thievery was, in fact, taken for granted in New Mexico.
In 1682, Fray Nicolas de Hurtado wrote from El Paso :
Everything here is in good condition, where it
has been quiet. Only the Apaches have done
what is their custom. For, during the present
month of January, there have been stolen two hun-
dred animals . . ,14
In the same year, the Jumanos sent two delegations to
El Paso to request aid against the Apaches, who, they
said, continually stole their horses.
A description of the state of affairs of Nueva Vizcaya
in the 1680s gives an idea of the forays of Cibolos, Apaches,
and other nomadic tribes of that region:
At the same time they are voracious when they
steal some cattle or horses (which is what they
most eagerly desire, since they secure in this way
two ends, first their maintenance, for their great-
est treat is this kind of food, and second, as a result
of the [Spanish] inhabitants being forced to go
on foot, they are able without resistance to obtain
possession of the province).15
During the same period, Fray Alonso de Posadas reported
that he had seen Apaches trading captive Indian women
of the Quivira nation for horses with the Indians of the
Pecos pueblos. He also mentioned the usual raids on the
herds of the Spaniards.16
The accounts of the French explorers offer evidence
of the spread of horses eastward and northward from New
Mexico. In 1682 La Salle saw horses among the Kiowa
Apaches. Meanwhile Henri de Tonty was visiting the Mis-
souris, of whom he said:
There are even villages which use horses to
go to war and to carry the carcasses of the cattle
which they kill.17
14. Hurtado to Xavier, in Autos Pertenecientes, 99, quoted in C. W. Hackett,
"Otermin's attempt to reconquer New Mexico, 1681-1682," Old Santa Fe, Hi, 128.
15. Hackett, op, cit., ii, 221.
16. Posadas, Report, 1686; Archivo Gen. y Pub. Hist. 3 (Bancroft Library trans-
cript).
17. P. Margry, Memoires et documents pour servir a I'histoire des origenes fran-
caises des pays d'outre-mer (Paris, 1879), i, 595.
SPREAD OF SPANISH HORSES IN THE SOUTHWEST 229
In 1687, La Salle was among the Hasinai and their allies
in eastern Texas. Joutel, chronicler of the expedition,
wrote :
Those we were with then were called Teao
[Texas] whom we had not before heard named.
They talked of a great nation called Ayona and
Canohatino who were at war with the Spaniards,
from whom they stole horses, and told us that one
hundred Spaniards were to have come to join the
Cenis to carry on that war, but having heard of
our march, they went back . . . He (La Salle) pro-
posed to them to barter for horses ; but they caused
them to be conveyed out of the way, for fear we
should take them away, excepting one bay, which
Monsieur de La Salle agreed for and returned to
us.18
Three years later Tonty journeyed to eastern Texas
in search of La Salle. He reached a Caddo village on the
Red River, and remarked in his memoir:
The Cadodaquis possess about thirty horses,
which they call cavcdis™
Tonty continued until he reached the Hasinai village of
Naouadiche, where La Salle had been in 1687.
I told their chief I wanted four horses for
my return, and having given him seven hatchets
and a string of large glass beads, they gave me the
next day four Spanish horses, two of which were
marked on the haunch with an *R' and a crown
above it, and another with an 'N.' Horses are very
common among them. There is not a cabin which
has not four or five. As this nation is sometimes
at war with the Spaniards, they take advantage
of a war to carry off their horses.20
Later on, Tonty added:
I forgot to say that the savages who have
horses use them both for war and hunting. They
make pointed saddles, wooden stirrups, and body
18. H. R. Stiles, ed., Joutel's journal of La Salle's last voyage 1684-87 (New York,
1906) pp. 126-127.
19. L. P. Kellogg, ed., Early Narratives of the Northwest 1638-1699 (New York,
1917), 316.
20. L. P. Kellogg, op. cit., 317.
230 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
covering of several skins, one over the other, as
a protection from arrows. They arm the breasts
of their horses with the same materials, a proof
that they are not very far from the Spaniards.21
The effect of the use of horses in inter-tribal warfare
can be seen first in the success of the Apaches against
neighboring tribes. In 1689, Father Massanet wrote of
them:
The Apaches form a chain running from east
to west, and wage war with all ; with the Salineros
alone do they maintain peace. They have always
had wars with the Spaniards of New Mexico, for
although truces have been made, they have en-
dured little. In the end they conquer all the tribes ;
yet it is said they are not brave because they fight
with armoured horses. They have offensive and
defensive weapons, and are very skilful and war-
like Indians.22
Methods of Indian warfare and horse-stealing in Parral
were described by Jose Francisco Marin, 1693.
Their first care is to strike down the horses.
This, with the great skill that attends them in the
use of such arms, they easily accomplish, and being
dismounted, the travelers are left defenseless and
become victims of their customary cruelties. If
they perceive they cannot make the attack without
danger to themselves, they keep quiet — all of
them, as is their custom, being painted and var-
nished the same color as the earth and generally
covered with sacaton [grass] — and permit the
travelers to pass . . .
In their robberies of horses they use the same
methods. They keep watch on ranches and pas-
tures, and upon the slightest carelessness they drive
off the animals, not more than three or four being
employed in such robberies. No matter how
quickly some citizens and soldiers assemble to
follow them, they always have a start of twenty
or thirty leagues, so that it is ... a piece of good
fortune if they overtake them, and if this does
21. Ibid., 320.
22. Diarios de los padres misioneros, 1691, in Memoriae de Nueva Espana, XXVII,
f 100, quoted in W. E. Dunn, "Apache relations in Texas, 1718-1750," Texas State
Historical Association Quarterly. XIV, 203.
SPREAD OF SPANISH HORSES IN THE SOUTHWEST 231
happen, and they perceive it, they shoot with ar-
rows some of the cattle, in order afterward to
come and eat them. Their principal food consists
of horses and mules . . ,23
Sonora experienced ravages similar to those of the
neighboring provinces. The Relation of Padre Kino told
of the depredations there during the 17th century.
For many years this province of Sonora has
suffered very much from its avowed enemies, the
Hocomes, Janos, and Apaches, through continual
thefts of cattle and horses, and murders of Chris-
tian Indians and Spaniards . . . injuries which in
many years not even the two expensive presidios,
that of Janos (northern Chihuahua) and that of
the province of Sonora have been able to remedy
completely, for still these enemies continue to in-
fest ... all this province of Sonora . . .
They have already reached and they now go as
far as Acenoquipe in the Valley of Sonora itself;
and as far as Taupe in the Valley of Opedepe
(San Miguel) and as far as San Ygnacio and
Santa Maria Magdalena in Pimeria.24
As more and more tribes sought horses, raiding parties
traveled greater distances. Livestock, instead of being
plentiful in the northern provinces, became scarce. An
indication of the increase of horse-stealing during the latter
half of the century can be seen in a letter of the sargento
mayor Juan Bautista de Escorza, written in Cerro Gordo,
13 July, 1693.
The truth is, that in these parts affairs are in
a worse state and the consequences are worse than
they have ever been, and I give as a reason two
evident causes. One is, that the ancient enemies,
who under the name of Tobosos have invaded these
kingdoms for many years, are now driven by neces-
sity itself and their own bad disposition to increase
the ravages, for, having consumed the thousands
of cattle and horses that roamed through these
lands, they now have no recourse except to seize
23. Hackett, op. cit., ii, 283.
24. H. E. Bolton, ed., Spanish Exploration in the Southwest, 1542-1706 (New
York, 1916), 451.
232 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
those raised by the Spaniards on their estates,
committing" frequent outrages that they did not
formerly commit so often. The other cause is that
formerly they (the local Indians) were so nu-
merous that they not only had no need to make
use of other Indians from the country farther in
the interior, but on the contrary they could pre-
vent them from coming in. But now . . . not only
do they not prevent the strange Indians from
coming in, but rather they solicit them and invite
them, subordinating themselves to them, as we
have just seen . . ,25
All of the available evidence indicates that the horses,
the style of riding, the saddles, the armor and some of the
weapons used by the mounted Indians of the Southwest,
were of Spanish origin or design. There is nothing to sug-
gest that there were mounted Indians in the Southwest be-
fore the 17th century, nor any reason to believe that the
natives of that region learned to use horses except from the
Spaniards.26
25. Hackett, op. cit., ii, 325.
26. The opinions contained herein are the private ones of the writer, and are not
to be construed as official or reflecting the views of the Navy Department or the naval
service at large, (signed) D. E. WORCESTER, Lieut. SC, USNR, Treasure Island,
Calif.
A LYNCHING AT TUCSON IN 1873
As written up by JOHN G. BOURKE
Edited by LANSING B. BLOOM
WHILE he was gathering ethnological data at Zuni in the
spring of 1881, Lieutenant John G. Bourke became
acquainted with Sylvester Baxter, a young newspaper cor-
respondent from Boston.1 Evidently the latter, in subse-
quent years, urged Bourke to put some of his rich source
materials into popular form ; at least in 1886, while pursu-
ing his ethnological research in Washington, Bourke did
write up the "Tucson Tragedy" which we are here repro-
ducing and sent it to Baxter who placed it with the Boston
Commercial Bulletin. Clippings from their issues of May
21 and May 28, 1887, were pasted by Bourke into his note-
book of that year.2
The style essayed by Bourke may seem to the reader
suspiciously like that of the "Nick Carter" and "Deadwood
Dick" dime novels of the 1880's, yet he would find that it
is very much in the journalistic style of that period. Also
it differed from dime novel literature in that Bourke was
recounting an actual episode — and he had gone through
Tucson at, or very near, the time of its occurrence.3
An historical account of this murder and the lynching
which followed is given by Dean Frank C. Lockwood in his
Pioneer Days in Arizona. Comparison shows some factual
discrepancies, which may be explained in part by the fact
that some of Bourke's early notebooks were lost or stolen.
When he wrote in 1886 about this affair of 1873, he was
probably relying on his memory. For example, he dates
the affair in September instead of August of that year;4
and all names used by him are fictitious except that of Willis.
1. New Mexico Historical Review, xi, 242.
2. Under date of September 5, 1887, with the comment: "I wrote it while in
Rockville, Maryland last fall" (1886).
3. New Mexico Historical Review, x, 2.
4. Richardson and Rister, The Greater Southwest, 407-408, quote the report of
the coroner's jury as of August 8, 1873. These authors, and probably Dean Lockwood
also, found their data in part at least in Bancroft's Works, xxxvi (Popular Tribunals,
vol. 1), 730-731.
233
234 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
The Lockwood account may be described as objective, pho-
tographic; the Bourke account as subjective, artistic. Each
has its own distinctive value.
A TUCSON TRAGEDY
A True Tale of Terror
Knights of the Green Cloth
and
The Pawnbroker's Last Pledge
Written for the Boston Commercial Bulletin
It was early morn in Tucson ; the eastern peaks of the
Santa Catarina were already peering through the darkness
of night and standing out bold and majestic in the rosy
glow creeping slowly from horizon to zenith.
Off in the west the glittering stars still looked kindly
down upon the tiny current of the Santa Cruz and the
rugged, grass-clad hills which crowded close upon it. The
sun grew bolder; his brightest rays now glinted upon the
timbered pinnacles of the Santa Rita, lit up the dome and
towers of the sacred fane of San Xavier del Bac and gilded
into gladness the melancholy dusty streets of the quaint old
presidio on the banks of the Holy Cross.
Outside of town the last coyote was skulking to his hole,
irresponsive to the yelps of distant kindred which announced
a treasure trove of dead burro in the mesquite jungle; an
energetic old mother quail was calling to her brood ; a pink-
eared jack-rabbit, almost large enough to be taken for the
twin brother of the burro upon which the coyotes were
banqueting, scurried homeward to his summer residence
under the roots of the sage brush.
Within the borough nature was awakening to the daily
round of toil or what passed for such among a people with
whom decorous idleness has long been refined into philoso-
phy. Game cocks, hens and pullets were scratching for the
hapless early worm or crowing and clucking welcome to the
coming day.
One of Dona Guadalupe Montoya's razor-backed pigs
was sedately trudging down the street, hunting for his daily
provender. In the "good old days" piles of garbage were
always conveniently handy at every corner; but, since the
coming of the accursed Gringos, it was a red-letter day in
any pig's calendar when he could find so much as a mess of
corn-husks within a distance of less than six blocks.
A LYNCHING AT TUCSON IN 1873 235
WAKING UP
Before long the lords of creation began to stir. First
those outside the houses and then those within, for by the
indulgence of a simple and Arcadian community it was the
privilege of the wayfarer, destitute of money, entering the
town after nightfall to camp on the main "plaza" and make
down his blankets with the earth for a pillow and the stars
for a canopy.
Don Manuel Martinez and his companion belonged to
this favored class and, in the absence of hotel or lodging
house, had nightly made free with the earth and sky of
Arizona. The air was cool and fresh, a degree or so too crisp
for comfort, but as Don Manuel arose from the ground and
adjusted his rainbow serape to his shivering shoulders, he
consoled himself with the reflection: "Ahorita viene la fri-
sada del pobre."*
Mechanically he rolled himself a cigarette, mechani-
cally he kicked the dog which had kept warm by fighting
fleas all night, and mechanically he growled to his com-
panion to get up.
There was work in store for Don Manuel Martinez
and his friend; not dull, coarse, plodding, every-day work,
but work of a more elevated type such as gentlemen could
safely put their hands to. For, be it understood, both our
dramatis personae were gentlemen in the loftiest sense of
the term and would scorn any such degradation as manual
labor.
Don Manuel indeed could write his name double. He
was not simply a Martinez, but by right of his mother a
Salazar, as well as a close relation of the Salazar who had led
the revolution in Sonora in favor of liberty and the consti-
tution.
"Which revolution?"
"Why the revolution when Gandara was governor."
"But I thought that Pesquiera led that?"
"Caramba ! Amigo ! That was the third revolution that
Pesquiera conducted. This was after the second revolution
of Gandara and the first of Ortiz. You should know, my
friend, that in Sonora we have had 47 revolutions in the past
nineteen years, and all of them for liberty and the constitu-
tion."
INDOLENT AND INDIFFERENT
And Don Manuel Martinez y Salazar puffed contemp-
tuously at his cigarette, wondering what manner of man
* A Mexican proverb : "Presently comes the poor man's blanket, the sun."
236 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
his Gringo interlocutor1 could be who knew so little of
history.
He rather despised the slowness of the American ele-
ment about him — slow in manner, quiet in dress, and glory-
ing in the absence of revolutions.
He knew that since the unsuccessful pronunciamiento of
Senor Davis, of which he had a hazy and distorted recollec-
tion,2 nothing to change the form of their government had
been attempted by the well-meaning and slow-moving
"Americanos" of the North, and that farmers, blacksmiths,
bankers, priests and merchants pursued the even tenor of
their respective ways, indifferent to such soul-stirring
appeals, as were then constantly appearing in Sonora, of
"Gandara and the Constitution !" "Pesquiera and Liberty !"
"Ortiz and the People!"
Our friends were what are known to the initiated as
Knights of the Green Cloth, — gamblers, in blunt language.
Not that there was anything strange about that. They were
not the only gamblers in Arizona by a good deal. There were
so many of the noble fraternity clustered about the different
little mining communities in the Southwest, at the period
whereof we write that the "Quartz Rock/' the "Palace," the
"Gem," the "Senate," and all the other scores upon scores of
"sample-rooms" and "club-rooms" found comfort and profit
in keeping open, night and day, week in and week out, the
clicking of "chips," the dropping of cards upon the tables,
and the stolid calls of the dealers being in striking but agree-
able contrast to the squeaking of tuneless harps and violins
which ground out the music of the respective orchestras.
A RUN OF LUCK
The blind goddess had dealt generously with Martinez
and his friend Valenzuela on this visit to Tucson. During
the whole week of the fiesta of San Agostinas, their "run of
luck" had neither turned nor slackened, and whether at the
purely Mexican games of Monte, "Chusas" and "Loteria," or
the more strictly American ones of Faro, Keno and Diana,
their stock of silver dollars had grown by degrees until they
were now able to return to the delightful land of Sonora, in
time for a repetition of the same career in the grander /zm-
cion of San Francisco, soon to be celebrated in the border
pueblo of Magdalena. They had only to redeem the few
articles upon which the obliging pawnbroker had advanced
the money with which they had begun their contest with the
1. Implying that Bourke himself had just quizzed him. — L.B.B.
2. An allusion to Jeff. Davis and the Civil war. — L. B. B.
A LYNCHING AT TUCSON IN 1873 237
"tiger" and then all would be in readiness for them to join
the first train of heavily-laden wagons rolling out of town.
This was why they had arisen so early and why they
now made their way down dusty streets, not altogether free
from garbage, past flat-roofed adobe houses, of simple struc-
ture and single story, to the broader avenue in which stood
the montepio of Mufioz.
The bells of the church were clanging their harsh sum-
mons to early mass; pious matrons, wrapped in black
"tapalps," were wending their way to divine service, anxious
to begin the day well.
The door of the bakery was open and the sleepy-eyed
baker's boy gaped while awaiting customers. So too was the
door of the shop of Pedro Ramirez, who was placing in best
position for display his assorted wares of onions, broad in
diameter, silvery in lustre, exquisite in flavor ; chile Colorado,
redder than the ruddiest glow of the setting sun ; cigarettes
for smoking; panache, in dense, compact, black, conical
frusta, sweeter than the juice of the sugar-cane lying in
bundles alongside; amole root, so good for washing cloth-
ing, hair or person ; earthen pots and matting — most of this
last the work of Papago Indians ; came seca, or native jerked
beef; bacon of American manufacture; mescal, clear as
water, hotter than breath of Tophet ; and all the varied list
of articles which make up the stock in trade of these Mexican
magazines.
QUIEN SABE?
Over the line, in their own country, they attain respec-
table dimensions and assume titles as elaborate as their pre-
tensions. There, they style themselves the "Emporium of
the Two Hemispheres/' the "New World," or the "Incom-
parable," etc. ; while, on the American side, either through
humility or lack of cash, they shrink from competition with
their proud American rivals and venture only upon such
shallows of commerce as are disdained by the Anglo-Saxon.
The creaking of ungreased wheels, disappearing in a
side-alley, might have proceeded from the wagon of some
"contrabandista," evading the customs officials ; or it might
have been from the vehicle of the honest old water carrier
on his way to the spring near the Bishop's farm. Quien
sabe?
Such were a few of the things, however, which our Mex-
icans might have noticed that fresh, glorious morning, had
not their minds been absorbed in the discussion of a question
to which Martinez, at least, addressed himself with vehe-
mence and energy. "No, comrade, I am not mistaken. Last
238 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
night, near the chusas table, I saw those three men, and look
you, my friend, they pleased me not. In the year when my
mother's uncle pronounced for liberty and the Constitution,
there were many outlaws in Sonora, as you may have heard,
— men lost to shame, — who robbed and plundered, broke
into houses, and when forced to do so, never shrunk from
murder. But they never used knife or pistol. Always, their
victim was killed with a heavy wooden club. You being in
the States at the time, can know but little of the terror this
excommunicated gang inspired, but, gracias a Dios ! nearly
all were captured and shot. But, Caramba! some of them
managed, by artful stories, to raise a doubt of their guilt
and saved their lives on condition of leaving Ures at once
and forever.
"And those three men I saw with the wagon were of
that gang, and I know it. We must be careful of ourselves
and money going down, my friend."
By this time their cigarettes were smoked out and turn-
ing a corner sharply, they stood in front of the montepio
(pawnbroker's) .
An air of stillness shrouded the building, the doors were
closed, the windows barred; no smoke wreathing upward
from the narrow-throated chimney evinced the industrious
cares of cheerful housewife.
"Tis strange!" muttered Valenzuela, "Sefior Munoz is
always the first man to arise in Tucson."
"Truly," replied Martinez, "and Dona Louisa has never
failed to hear the early Mass. There's something wrong.
Look! Here's the dog and blood is upon his feet."
A DOLEFUL DOG
The dog was one of those wretched mongrels whose
appearance belies every suggestion of pedigree, and yet his
very homeliness seemed to attract and to accent the affec-
tionate nature which appealed for sympathy and tenderness.
It was not whining or howling, but giving voice in a
tone which might be called a subdued form of either, and in
which abject terror and impotent rage struggled for expres-
sion.
"The doors are firmly bolted," said Valenzuela, "and the
windows are closed from the inside. What better can we do
than follow the poor little dog and see what he has to show
us? There has been some terrible crime committed — "
"Said and done," replied Martinez, pushing aside the
shoots of iron cactus which formed the fence to the house ;
"here we are, and we shall soon see."
A LYNCHING AT TUCSON IN 1873 239
"First, I see blood here in the sand," called out Valen-
zuela, "and here is a plain foot-track and here another, and
look! a third."
The dog was scratching and pushing with all his might
against the back-door, which yielded enough to the pressure
to admit half his body.
Martinez and Valenzuela were men of quick percep-
tions. They hesitated not a moment in concluding that this
door had been forced during the night, if, indeed, it had not
been left open by the family. And the murderers — if mur-
derers they were — in leaving the premises had nothing to do
but pull the door to after them, letting fall loosely against it
the heavy cottonwood log, so generally used in that region
in place of lock or key.
"We must be careful, Jose Maria," said Martinez;
"there has surely been murder within. This silence, these
bloody foot-tracks, this mourning dog, this line of buzzing
flies streaming into the house, means a masacre; no doubt
the family has been martyrized."
All this colloquy took but a minute. The Mexican of the
border shows his Indian lineage in nothing more plainly than
in the quickness with which he seizes upon every little indi-
cation in the tracks left by man or beast.
"Well, here goes,"' said Valenzuela, and in a trice he
had forced an entrance and stood within the kitchen.
On the hearth, no fire, — a proof that no cooking had
been done since the evening previous. A mocking-bird
hopped about nervously in his little cage of willow twigs,
fastened to the wall. A bloody track led into the next room.
Here an appalling spectacle froze the blood in the veins of
the two Mexicans.
Were this little sketch a romance, space and time could
well be given to a description of what they saw. In a simple
narrative of an incident which is still remembered with
horror by the old settlers, and in which names alone were
slightly changed, it is hardly worth while to wound the
feelings of such relatives as may still be in existence.
Briefly, then, Munoz, his wife and babe lay dead, bru-
tally murdered. The mother had, apparently, been killed
first, and in awakening to her defence, the father had
grappled desperately with his assailants and fought his last
struggle upon the earthen floor, pooled with his blood.
In the last gasp of life, the poor mother had instinctively
clasped in her arms the innocent babe which also had re-
ceived a deadly blow, — all with some heavy, blunt instru-
ment,— crushing in the skull.
240 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
The two now shouted to those within, but received no
reply. The dog whined more piteously, the buzzing of the
flies grew louder and more clamorous, almost drowning the
ghastly tick, tick, ticking of a cheap wooden clock which
sounded from within.
"Have a care, compadre, the murderers may still be
within." Quien sabe?"
"Never fear," replied Valenzuela, stoutly; "let's cock
our pistols and go in boldly. This is a terrible tragedy
surely."
WAS IT A MURDER?
"Cool villains they must be. Look! Here by the olla
they stood, drinking water, while, no doubt, their victims
were not yet cold."
"Not drinking water so much as washing their feet,"
said Martinez, correcting him. "Do you not notice these
barefoot prints, all going into the house ? The villains crept
up to the door in their bare feet, which must have tramped in
blood; — here we have the bloody footprints and here moc-
casined tracks, as they made their way through the fence.
There were two of them, maybe more."
WHO DID THE BLOODY DEED?
Martinez and Valenzuela were both brave men. No
ordinary foe would have made either of them "take water."
Here, in the presence of an awful, mysterious death, fear
seized upon their limbs. Their tongues refused to speak.
They dared not look at their own reflections in the mirrors
which adorned the wails, and trembled whenever they
touched against a rawhide bottomed chair or other furni-
ture scattered about the room.
"They have broken open every drawer, trunk and box in
the house" was all that Valenzuela could manage to say to
his friend. "Yes, let us get away from here and give the
alarm. Who knows? We may catch the murderers yet."
Like magic, the direful news spread through the town. The
distance to the Post Office was very short. The morning was
well-advanced and numbers were in the streets. Ere another
hour has passed, hundreds had gathered about the enclosure
in which stood the house of the pawnbroker. A half dozen
cool-headed Americans had assumed charge of matters and
stationed sentinels who kept the crowd at a distance. "No
man must go within the fence to tread in the foot tracks" —
was the terse order given to the sentinel who quietly took
post by the cactus paling. None of the leaders had the
faintest hope of catching the mysterious murderers, but
A LYNCHING AT TUCSON IN 1873 241
their resolution was that no reasonable precaution looking to
that end, should be omitted, — "and at least we can say, boys,"
said Tom Evans, who was prominent in this small circle of
leaders, "at least we can say that we've done all that can
be done."
Kind hands, prompted by gentle hearts, had in the
meanwhile been busy. The bodies of the victims had been
placed in more presentable postures and the various rooms
put in order, and then the population surged in, men, women,
toddling children, babes at the breast, — some impelled by
curiosity, others by affection, but all manifesting the tender-
est respect.
The Americans said little, did little, apparently, but
their faces spoke volumes. The Mexicans, more demonstra-
tive, bewailed the loss of friends whom they had known for
years.
The sobs of women were unrestrained. Grief was con-
fined to no particular class. It pervaded the whole commu-
nity and extended its infliction to strangers as well as
residents.
A DISCOVERY
Martinez alone seemed displeased, annoyed or worried
by this general outburst. He had been in conference with
Evans and the rest of the small party of Americans for an
hour or more ; and again he sought the leader.
"Senor, I have something to say for your ear alone. A
few words only. / have found the murderers!"
"Nonsense! the news is too good to be true. Our
mounted pickets are out on every trail and not one of them
has reported a track." "Soft and easy, Don Tomas, the
robbers are in this very house."
Evans who was usually cool as ice, was so astounded at
this unexpected information that he shook from head to
foot. "Make no mistake," he managed to gasp out, "tell me
for the Good Lord's sake, who and where they are."
"Don't be excited, Don Tomas, we have our birds, but we
must be careful lest they fly. Do you see that swarthy Mex-
ican yonder — him of the new serape? Yes! — and that
other in the plush jacket and him beyond, wearing the som-
brero, with the silver snake about it? Those three who are
so loudly lamenting this foul murder? Those are they and
that one in serape rolling himself a cigarette, did the deed.
I did not see him do it , but Senor Evans, his feet are washed,
have been washed this morning. I dropped my sombrero to
the ground, as if by accident, and in stooping to recover it,
I raised his loose cotton trousers without being detected and
242 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
I saw that his feet had just been washed to the ankles. Senor,
I know those men. They are members of the most desperate
gang that ever held fair Sonora in terror," and here. Mar-
tinez rapidly poured in to Evans' ear all that he had men-
tioned to Valenzuela on his way down from the plaza.
(To be concluded)
CORRECTION
By FRANCE V. SCHOLES
IN THE January number of the Review for 1929 I pub-
lished a report listing the Franciscan convents in New
Mexico and the visitas and number of Indians administered
by each convent. This report, found in Archive General de
Indias, Audiencia de Mexico, legajo 306 (60-3-6), forms
part of a series of papers relating to a petition of Fray
Antonio de Aristoi, procurador of the Franciscan Province
of the Holy Gospel of Mexico, that forty friars be sent to
New Spain for service in the said province and its two
cicstodias of New Mexico and Tampico.
The preamble to the New Mexico report reads as
follows :
Certificacion de las noticias que hay de la
Custodia del nuebo Mex.co perteneciente a la Prou.a
del S.to Euang.0 de Mex.co ; el estado que tienen las
conversiones, Yglesias, Conv.tos y culto diuino, que
aba jo iran senalados por relacion y noticia q dio
de aquella Custodia el P.e Predicador fr. Geronimo
de Zarate Salmeron, Ministro exemplar en aquella
Custodia. Remitida al muy R.do P.e fr. Fran.co de
Apodaca, P.e de la Prou.a de Cantabria y Comiss.0
gen.1 de las de nueba Espana, desde el afio de 1538
hasta el afio de 1626 anos.
On the basis of the foreging statement, I expressed the
opinion, in my brief introduction, that the report "seems
to have been part of or supplementary to the Relation of
Fray Geronimo de Zarate Salmeron." I also stated that
inasmuch as the printed text of Salmeron's Relation does
not contain such a list of convents, "the Relation as we
have had it is not complete."
Despite the express reference to Salmeron in the pre-
amble as quoted above, I was obviously in error in regarding
the report as a hitherto missing part of Salmeron's well-
known treatise. This is clear from the internal evidence of
the report itself. In the first place, the report mentions the
killing of one of the friars of the "province of Zuni," un-
243
244 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
doubtedly a reference to the murder of Fray Francisco de
Letrado in 1632. Second, it records the fact that the Indians
of Taos had revolted, killed their minister, and destroyed
a handsome church. This would appear to be a reference
to events of 1639, when Fray Pedro de Miranda was killed
at Taos.1 Inasmuch as Salmeron wrote his report, or at
least presented the completed draft to the Commissary
General of New Spain, in 1629, it is evident that the con-
vent list recording events of 1632 and 1639 could not have
formed part of his work.
When was the report actually written? The document
as we have it is in the form of a copy dated at Madrid,
May 24, 1664, and signed by Fray Bartolome Marquez,
"Secretary General of the Indies," and based on "the orig-
inal which is in the Archive of the Secretariat of the Indies."
That is, the original was apparently on file in the central
archive of the Franciscan Order for the Indies. This means
that it must have antedated 1664. Evidence of this is also
found in the fact that the report records the pueblo of the
Jumanos (the pueblo of "Gran Quivira," now usually called
Las Humanas) and Tabira as visitas of Abo. Since we know
that as early as 1659-1660 a separate convent for Las Hu-
manas had been established, with Tabira as a visita,2 the
report was obviously written prior to 1659. On the other
hand, it could not have been earlier than 1639, since it
mentions the killing of the friar at Taos.
The Taos entry of the report also states that six hun-
dred souls of this "province" had been "reduced," implying
that action had already been taken to restore authority in
that area. In a decree of Governor Juan Flores de Sierra
y Valdez, dated July 16, 1641, we learn that soon after his
arrival in New Mexico in the spring of 1641 he had "sub-
jected" the Indians of Taos.3 Consequently the statement
about the reduction of six hundred souls may be a reference
1. Cf. Scholes, Church and State in New Mexico, 1610-1650 (Albuquerque, 1937),
137.
2. Scholes and Mera, Some Aspects of the Jumano Problem (Washington, 1940),
281; Scholes, Troublous Times in New Mexico, 1659-1670 (Albuquerque, 1942), 64-55.
3. Decree of Flores, Santa Fe, July 16, 1641. Archive General de Indias, Pa-
tronato 244, exp. 7.
CORRECTION 245
to Flores' campaign. It should be noted, however, that the
report does not indicate that the Taos convent had been
reestablished.
The entry for the "province of Zuni" records that the
Indians there had been severely punished for killing- their
friar. This may refer to the military expedition sent to
Zuni in 1632 after the death of Letrado.4 The entry also
adds that "in this province there are 1200 Indians who
have asked for ministers once more," but as in the case
of Taos there is no mention that missionary work at Zuni
had actually been resumed. Although the exact date when
the Zuni missoins were reestablished is not known, it was
probably between 1642 and 1644.5
All this seems to indicate that the convent list was
written in 1641. Other evidence that it was compiled in
that year is found in a letter of the Franciscan Commissary
General of New Spain to the Commissary General of the
Indies, dated at Mexico, March 12, 1642. The letter states
that the mission supply caravan had now returned to Mex-
ico. This is clearly a reference to the caravan that arrived
in New Mexico in the spring of 1641 and set out again for
New Spain in the following autumn. The Commissary Gen-
eral goes on to say: "that the custodia has the convents
which Your Reverence will see in the memoria which is
enclosed with this [letter]."6 This suggests that he had
just received a report from New Mexico brought in the
recently arrived caravan.
Finally, we have testimony given in New Mexico in
1644 to the effect that there were then twenty-eight doc-
trinas, with their churches and convents, in the province,
besides other churches and visitas.7 The report under dis-
7. Testimony of Alferez Alonso Varela, Santo Domingo, August 11, 1644. Ibid.
cussion lists twenty-four convents, not including Senecu,
4. Cf. Hodge, History of Hawikuh (Los Angeles, 1937), 92.
5. A document in the Servicios Personalea of Juan Dominguez de Mendoza (Bib-
lioteca Nacional, Madrid, MS. 192588) refers to an expedition to Zuni sent out after
the arrival of Governor Alonso Pacheco de Herredia in 1642. Although this document,
as it stands, is apparently a forgery, I am also of the opinion that the reference to
Zuni records an event that actually occurred in the time of Pacheco (1642-1644), al-
though the circumstances as related in the document may not be entirely trustworthy.
6. Prada to Maldonado, Mexico, March 12, 1642. A. G. I., Patronato 244, exp. 7.
246 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
Taos, and the Zuni area. Senecu undoubtedly had a convent
at this time, so that the number of convents actually must
have been twenty-five. If the Taos convent and two more
at Zuni (Hawikuh and Halona) were reestablished between
1641 and 1644, as seems likely, then we should have twenty-
eight in 1644, as the testimony of that year indicates.
Everything considered, I believe that the report I pub-
lished in 1929 was compiled in 1641 and describes the state
of affairs in that year. In any case its date probably is not
later than 1644. Why the preamble mentions Salmeron's
treatise is a question for which I have no answer.
A re-translation of the report will be included in my
forthcoming volume on Don Juan Dominguez de Mendoza in
the Coronado Historical Series. I wish to take advantage
of the present occasion, however, to make corrections in
the population figures in the translation as published in the
Review. At that time I misread the figures for the popu-
lation served by the convent of Santa Clara, giving 993 in-
stead of 553, which is the correct figure. Consequently the
total should be 19,741, instead of 20,181. The manuscript
gives the total as 19,951, but this is due to mistakes of
addition in the original.
It may be noted that in 1643 Governor Alonso Pacheco
de Heredia reported that in forty-three pueblos he had
counted 19,870 Indians.8 The mission report mentions forty-
three towns not counting those at the "province of Zuni,"
credited with 1200 Indians.
8. Pacheco to the viceroy, August 6, 1643. Ibid.
BOOK REVIEWS
New Viewpoints in Georgia History. By Albert B. Saye,
assistant professor of political science at the University of
Georgia. (The University of Georgia Press, Athens, Ga.
1943. 256pp. $2.50.)
A scholarly study of the colonial history of Georgia
from the date of the colony's founding in 1732 to 1789, this
well documented and annotated volume, incidentally, dispels
the legend that Georgia was founded for the relief of debtors
languishing in British prisons. "The evidence is persua-
sive," writes the author, "that only a handful of debtors
ever came to Georgia — a dozen would be a fair estimate."
Philanthropic, military and economic factors were primary
considerations of the British government in supporting the
colonizing project of James Edward Oglethorpe. Never-
theless, 2122 persons were sent to Georgia on charity from
1732 to 1750, of whom 1096 were British and 1026 foreign
Protestants. In the first report upon the method used in
selecting the Georgia colonists, the Political State of Great
Britain said: "As soon as it began to be rumored about,
that the said Trustees were to send out some People to
take Possession of the said Colony, there were vast Num-
bers of poor miserable Wretches made Application to them ;
and when the Gentlemen declared, that upon casting up their
Cash, they found it was not sufficient to send over imme-
diately but a few, and that therefore they had chosen those
that were the greatest Objects of Compassion, the rest
found themselves disappointed." Further: "The early set-
tlers of Georgia were in the main persecuted Protestants
from Germany and English of the 'middle poor/ "... "There
were Jews and Gentiles, English, Germans, Scotch, Irish,
French, Italians, Portuguese and perhaps other nationalities
represented ; there were men and women of every trade and
profession : viticulturists, doctors, silk workers, sawyers, pin-
dars, Indian traders, bakers, ministers, carpenters, survey-
ors, shopkeepers, bricklayers, midwives, pilots, shoemakers,
wheelwrights and numerous other occupational groups;
there were masters with indentured servants and poor
247
248 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
settlers entirely dependent upon the charity of the Trust;
there were Anglicans, Baptists, Presbyterians, Lutherans,
Moravians and other religious groups ; there were graduates
of Oxford, persons with only a few years of academic train-
ing, and hundreds of illiterates, the latter not excluding
some officials in high positions."
Of great interest is the story of the development of
the colonial government from a model royal colony into a
state government, democratic in form with a constitution
which provided for a separation of executive, judicial and
legislative powers. "The similarity of the Constitutions of
Georgia, Pennsylvania and Vermont in respect to a uni-
cameral legislature has sometimes led to an erroneous clas-
sification of other features as common to the three. The
executive council in Georgia was elected by the legislature
from its own membership, not by a direct vote of the people
as in Pennsylvania and Vermont." Thus the author follows
step by step the controversies, debates, which preceded and
followed the Revolution of the Thirteen Colonies. It is sig-
nificant that Georgia was one of the first states to ratify
the United States constitution. It was thereafter that crude
constitutions of earlier dates began to be replaced by state
constitutions modeled largely after that of Massachusetts.
The 1789 Georgia constitution, "the briefest of Georgia's
seven constitutions, contained no separate bill of rights;
but freedom of the press, the most necessary of all civil
liberties for the preservation of a democracy, together with
trial by jury, habeas corpus, and the free exercise of re-
ligion were guaranteed by the Fourth Article."
Professor Saye's contribution to colonial and consti-
tutional history is of more than local interest as it helps
to explain general trends whose influence is felt even at
the present day. It is curious to note that the domain of
the colony of Georgia was deemed to extend as far west
as the Mississippi with even the suggestion that the Pacific
was the western boundary and that therefore New Mexico
was included. A bibliography of manuscript, printed and
secondary sources of local as well as general works is of
value to students who are interested in colonial annals. —
P. A. F. W.
BOOK REVIEWS 249
Land Tenure Problems in the Santa Fe Railroad Grant
Area. By Sanford A. Mosk. Publications of the Bureau of
Business and Economic Research, University of California.
(University of California Press, Berkeley and Los Angeles,
1944; 66 pp. $1.00.)
Sanford A. Mosk, assistant professor of economics in
the University of California, has written a useful summary
of the land problem involved in the conflict of interests be-
tween the railroad, stockmen, Indians, and the state and
federal governments, in the area covered by the land grant
to the Atlantic & Pacific Railroad Company in 1866, ex-
tending from Albuquerque, New Mexico, to the California
border. The land holdings of these several interests are
intermingled in a confused checkerboard pattern due to
the granting of alternate sections along the railroad right
of way to that company, sectional grants to the states for
institutions, individual homesteading, and the allotment of
land to the Navaho in severalty.
An especially difficult part of the land problem in the
area studied is the long-time conflict between the Navaho
and the white man for the grazing land east of the reser-
vation boundary. For a solution of the problem as a whole
which, in its broadest aspects, is one of land conservation,
the Taylor Act of 1934 provides a working basis, but the
process of working it out will be long and difficult. The
stockman is interested in his profit, the Navaho is strug-
gling for a livelihood, the Government seeks a better policy
of land usage, and too many government agencies have a
voice in the matter.
The study is based on an adequate bibliography, supple-
mented by the author's interviews with people acquainted
with the problem, and has a good index.
FRANK D. REEVE
250 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
El Federalista. By Gustavo R. Velasco. (Mexico: Fondo de
Cultura Economica, 1943. xxvi-f 446 pp., appendices, index.)
Through the courtesy of Mr. J. A. C. Grant of the
University of California at Los Angeles, we have a review
copy of the new Spanish edition of the famous articles by
Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison, admira-
bly translated from the English and annotated by the Lie.
Gustavo R. Velasco.
In his prologo, Professor Velasco gives an excellent
historical evaluation of the book and its authors, quoting the
words of De Tocqueville, for example, who called it a book
"with which the statesmen of all countries ought to familiar-
ize themselves." Yet when he asks (p. xvi) what influence
The Federalist had in Latin American countries, he shows
that even in English it was hardly known there before the
end of the nineteenth century. There were two contem-
porary French editions (1792 and 1795) , but there was none
in Portuguese until 1840, nor in Spanish until the editions of
1868 and 1887. Of these, not a copy has been located in
Mexico today, nor does our own Library of Congress have
either of them. While we know, therefore, that our constitu-
tion was used as a model by our Latin American neighbors
in the writing of one and another of their constitutions, there
is little chance that the authors of those documents had any
acquaintance with the commentary and exposition of princi-
ples which they might have found in The Federalist. In
Mexico, for example, this would be true of their constitutions
of 1812, 1824, 1836, 1843, and 1857.
Professor Velasco has enhanced the value of his work
by including in the appendices a Spanish translation of our
Articles of Confederation and of our Constitution, — includ-
ing the twenty-one amendments, none of which had been
rectified prior to the appearance of these articles in The
Federalist. — L.B.B.
fubflcUbrart
***** City, M
NEWS AND COMMENTS
ANNUAL MEETING
THE HISTORICAL SOCIETY of New Mexico held its annual
meeting on January 26, 1944, in St. Francis Auditor-
ium, with the president, Paul A. F. Walter presiding. A
technicolor motion picture of Williamsburg, Virginia, show-
ing a documentary reenacting of life in the Colonial period
of the eighteenth century, was shown jointly by the his-
torical and archaeological societies. About 100 people at-
tended.
At the business meeting preceding the showing of the
film, the reports of the secretary and treasurer were read
and accepted. The treasurer reported that the Society had
purchased a $500 War Bond and recommended the purchase
of another $500 bond ; and a motion was made and carried
to do so. Accessions were announced, and new members
accepted. Mr. Walter spoke of the research project of five
years of research in the economic development of the Rocky
Mountain region, obtained by Herbert Brayer from the
Rockefeller foundation. He also told of Hulda Hobbs hav-
ing joined the WAVES, of Dr. Hewett's plans concerning
a Hall of Records, of the state finance committee continuing
the war records work conducted by Albert Ely. Joseph
Toulouse reported on the new commission which he will
head, with a $2600 budget, for archaeological work in the
Saline region, sponsored by Washington and Jefferson Col-
lege.
The nominating committee, Mr. Rupert Asplund, chair-
man, and Mrs. R. E. Twitchell and Miss Jennie Avery, pre-
sented their nominations of the following officers : Mr. Paul
A. F. Walter, president; Mr. Pearce C. Rodey of Albuquer-
que, vice-president; Mr. Lansing B. Bloom of Albuquerque,
corresponding secretary; Mr. Wayne L. Mauzy, treasurer;
and Miss Hester Jones, recording secretary. The above
were unanimously elected — there being no further nomina-
tion. H. J.
251
252 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
The following are the accessions reported:
Mrs. J. Davidson, Albuquerque, New Mexico, gave
several pieces of china belonging to the late Colonel W. M.
Berger of Belen and Santa Fe.
Mr. Frank White, Palo Alto, California, gave an old
flint-lock rifle found in the hills near Santa Fe.
From the Spanish Chest, Bruce Cooper Collection, was
purchased a group of thirty-five Santos and Bultos.
A blacksmith's wheel pattern used up to seventy-five
years ago in a blacksmith shop in Espafiola was purchased
from Lupe Martinez.
Dr. Hewett presented the Society with the following
items : an old copper dipper, an old griddle, fireplace tongs,
and a collection of Confederate coins and currency.
Four retablos were purchased from Elmer Shupe.
Mrs. R. E. Twitchell gave the Society the Ralph Emer-
son Twitchell portrait done by Gerald Cassidy.
An old leather snuff bottle was purchased from Eusebio
Montoya of Galisteo.
An old tortilla griddle from Chilili was purchased from
F. Gallegos.
The old Pojoaque Church keys were purchased from
Angeline Montoya, whose grandfather was the custodian
of the edifice at one time.
Eleanor Bedell of this city, loaned for an indefinite
period, an old wooden Spanish Colonial type plough from
the Las Vegas district.
A gift of thirty bultos and thirty-six retablos to sup-
plement the Historical Society collection, received from the
Federal Arts project for New Mexico.
M. E. Murphy of Trinidad, Colo., gave the Society the
watch and original armistice message relayed to this state
from the last world war.
Mrs. Jack Lowe of this city, loaned indefinitely to the
Society, five pieces of china of historical value to the South-
west.
Mr. John Gaw Meem of Santa Fe gave an old Spanish
Colonial vinegar barrel which formerly was used at Cor-
dova.
NEWS AND COMMENTS 253
Mrs. C. M. JaramUlo of this city loaned indefinitely the
priestly vestments and church paraphernalia from her
family chapel at Arroyo Hondo in the Taos Valley.
Roy Kozlowski of this city loaned an old wooden plough.
The Society purchased an excellent old wooden buggy
and wagon jack and a carpenter's plane for its Spanish
and Mexican tool collection (probably the best in existence)
from the Spanish and Indian Trading Post.
Mrs. Gerald Cassidy gave a San Ildefonso wedding jar
containing Confederate currency, which was found in 1920-
21 by a goat herder in the arroyo back of the Santa Fe Inn.
On June 30, 19^3 the Museum purchased the following
from the James McMillan collection to supplement Spanish
Colonial and Mexican exhibits of the Historical Society: A
fine old trastero (cupboard), a carved wooden settee, a
painted chest, a carved wooden chest, and four metal holy
wafer moulds from the old church at Cieneguilla.
Of special note at this time it is announced that all
colchas, sabanillas and blankets belonging to the society
have been permanently mothproofed and Siberized so that
further deterioration has been greatly impeded.
MARJORIE TICHY
TIPS FOR THE PLAINS TRAVELER
"The best seat inside a stage is the one next to the
driver. Even if you have a tendency to seasickness when
riding backwards — you'll get over it and will get less bumps
and jostling. Don't let any 'sly Elph' trade you his mid-seat.
"In cold weather don't ride with tight fitting boots,
shoes or gloves. When the driver asks you to get off and
walk do so without grumbling. He won't request it unless
absolutely necessary. If the team runs away — sit still and
take your chances. If you jump, nine out of ten times you
will get hurt.
"In very cold weather abstain entirely from liquor
when on the road ; because you will freeze twice as quickly
when under its influence.
"Don't growl at the food received at the station ; stage
companies generally provide the best they can get. Don't
254 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
keep the stage waiting. Don't smoke a strong pipe inside
the coach — spit on the leeward side. If you have anything
to drink in a bottle pass it around. Procure your stimulants
before starting as 'ranch (stage depot) whiskey is not
always "nectar."
"Don't swear nor lop over neighbors when sleeping.
Take small change to pay expenses. Never shoot on the
road as the noise may frighten the horses. Don't discuss
politics or religion. Don't point out where murders have
been committed, especially if there are any women passen-
gers. Don't lag at the wash basin. Don't grease your hair,
because travel is dusty. Don't imagine for a moment that
you are going on a picnic. Expect annoyance, discomfort
and some hardship." — WeUs Fargo Messenger.
LIST OF POSTMASTERS OF SANTA
SANTA Ffi COUNTY, NEW MEXICO
Postmaster Date Appointed
William S. McKnight October 1, 1849 (Established)
William E. Love February 12, 1851
William Andrew Miller April 7, 1852
David Whiting March 4, 1854
William A. Miller August 14, 1854
Lewis D. Sheets March 10, 1855
David V. Whiting June 4, 1855
Samuel K. Hodges August 1, 1861
Augustine M. Hunt October 15, 1861
Martin L. Byers October 17, 1865
George T. Martin March 12, 1868
Richard M. Stephens April 8, 1869
George W. Rowland June 8, 1869
Alexander P. Sullivan May 23, 1871
Eben Everett May 28, 1872
Marshall A. Breeden February 13, 1873
Charles B. Hayward April 18, 1884
Adolph Seligman April 6, 1886
Jacob Weltmer March 24, 1890
Thomas P. Gable May 15, 1894
Simon Nusbaum May 19, 1898
Paul A. F. Walter June 27, 1902
Frank W. Shearon January 26, 1909
S. B. Grimshaw (Acting) September 11, 1909
Edward C. Burke March 2, 1910
NEWS AND COMMENTS 255
John Pflueger June 7, 1912
J. Howard Vaughn (Acting) May 29, 1914
James L. Seligman October 1, 1914
Marie J. O'Bryan (Acting) August 1, 1923
Frederick R. Stevenson (Acting) October 5, 1928
Hilario A. Delgado (Acting) December 31, 1928
Hilario A. Delgado February 9, 1929
Antonio F. Martinez (Acting) November 13, 1934
Antonio F. Martinez May 31, 1935
CENSUS SUPERVISORS OF NEW MEXICO
1900 Pedro Sanchez, Taos
1910 S. D. 1 — Paul A. F. Walter, Santa Fe
1920 S. D. 1 — Juan J. Duran, Clayton
S. D. 2 — Byron O. Beall, Santa Fe
1920 S. D. l^Jesus M. Baca, Santa Fe
S. D. 2— Henry E. Blattman, Las Vegas
S. D. 3 — Felipe M. Garcia, Albuquerque
S. D. 4 — George D. Robinson, Deming
S. D. 5 — Henry A. Ingalls, Roswell
1940 S. D. 1— Louis C. de Baca, Santa Fe
S. D. 2 — Carl F. Whittaker, Albuquerque
S. D. 3 — John Bingham, Roswell
S. D. 4 — Robert G. Franey, Deming
Prior to 1900, from 1850 to 1890, inclusive, the census of New
Mexico was taken by the U. S. Marshall for New Mexico.
NECROLOGY
Fred S. Donnell. — Death came to Fred S. Donnell, an
occasional contributor to the New Mexico Historical Review,
at the home of his half-sister, Mrs. Walter S. Trowbridge,
at Fayetteville, Ark.
Although of limited school education, Donnell had a
remarkable memory for facts and figures. He was an
omnivorous reader and delved with avidity into the records
of the Civil War, making himself an authority on the phases
of that conflict in the Southwest and of the diplomacy of
the Confederacy with the republic of Mexico. He left un-
published at the time of his death a book on "Civil War
Times in the Southwest" but his illness which resulted in
his death took him to Fayetteville in 1940, and hampered
negotiations for the publication of the volume.
Donnell, after years in business in Santa Fe, took up
his residence in El Paso. He had become an expert on oil
development in New Mexico and was an abstractor whose
plats of oil lands in the State were detailed and authorita-
tive. P. A. F. W.
Myron B. Keator. — For more than 35 years a practicing
attorney at Tucumcari, Myron B. Keator died in that city
on April 3, 1944. He was born September 25, 1876, in
Roxbury, N. Y. He was a graduate of the New York Uni-
versity School of Law, and when still in his twenties ac-
cepted the position of professor of law in the college at
Cordell, Okla. He came to New Mexico in June, 1908, and
on January 8, 1909, was admitted to the New Mexico Bar
and associated himself with Attorney Charles C. Davidson
in the practice of law. In 1913, Keator married Miss Lena
Corn, who survives him, as do a brother at Port Arthur,
Texas, and three sisters who live in New York.
The deceased was an elder of the First Presbyterian
Church at Tucumcari. Past-president of Kiwanis and mem-
ber of the Masonic bodies, he was civic-minded and quietly
but consistently worked for the upbuilding of his commu-
nity. Keator, an enthusiastic gardener and flower lover,
256
NECROLOGY 257
maintained a greenhouse in his garden and was generous
in bestowing upon friends the flowers which had blossomed
under his care. He loved to fish and hunt and it was some
two years ago while on a hunting trip that he was caught
in a blizzard and contracted the illness which led to his
death.
Rev. Millard Murphey, pastor of the Presbyterian
church, officiated at the funeral, interment being in the
Tucumcari Memorial Park. Pall bearers were fellow mem-
bers of the Presbyterian session: R. B. Read, O. B. Erskine,
William Troup, Webb Warner, Jack Stone, James A.
Creighton, J. A. Gafford and Walden Stith.
P. A. F. W.
Mrs. Napoleon B. Laughlin. — In the passing of Mrs.
Napoleon (Kate) Laughlin, at Santa Fe on May 12, 1944,
New Mexico lost one of its pioneer women, well known to
many. She was born in 1857, at Rockwood, Tennessee,
daughter of William Caleb and Rebecca Ellis Kimbrough,
whose ancestors were early settlers in Virginia. While
Mrs. Laughlin was still a young child, the family in a covered
wagon trekked to Texas, but returned to Tennessee after
two years. There she attended school, and later matricu-
lated and graduated from Martha Washington College, Vir-
ginia. By that time, the family had again moved to Texas.
Their farm is now Oak Cliff, a suburb of Dallas. There she
met the late Napoleon B. Laughlin whom she married in
1883. Laughlin came to New Mexico as a healthseeker
sixty years ago, interested himself in mining in southern
Santa Fe county and opened a law office in Santa Fe, being
later appointed a judge of the territorial supreme court.
Mrs. Laughlin was one of the founders of the Santa Fe
Women's Club and Library Association and interested her-
self actively in the State Museum, the School of American
Research and the Archaeological Society of New Mexico.
She was also a member of the guild of the Church of the Holy
Faith, Episcopal. Two daughters survive her: Ruth, wife
of Dr. H. S. A. Alexander of Santa Fe, and Helen, wife of
Emory M. Marshall of Walnut Creek, Calif. There are seven
258 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
grandchildren, Mrs. William H. Hale, New York ; Mrs. Ran-
som Van Brunt Lynch, Boston; Mrs. Fred E. Wilkins, Wal-
nut Creek, California; Lieut. Laughlin Barker, 2d Lieut.
Randolph L. Marshall, Emory L. Marshall and John L. Mar-
shall. There are also two great-grandchildren: James R.
Wilkins, N. Y. ; and Katherine Laughlin Hale, Walnut Creek,
California.
Funeral services were held in the Church of the Holy
Faith by the rector, the Rev. C. K. Kinsolving III, and inter-
ment was in Fairview Cemetery. The active pall bearers
were: Carl A. Bishop, George M. Bloom, Alfred C. Wiley,
William J. Barker, Richard Day, J. 0. Seth, Fred G. Healy,
Dr. Frank E. Mera. Honorary pallbearers: Governor John J.
Dempsey, Chief Justice Daniel K. Sadler, Judge Howard L.
Bickley, Judge Charles R. Brice, Judge A. H. Hudspeth, U.
S. Solicitor General Charles Fahy, Judge Colin Neblett,
Dr. Edgar L. Hewett, John E. Miles, Paul A. F. Walter,
Rupert F. Asplund, Francis C. Wilson, Daniel T. Kelly,
John Pflueger, Dr. William C. Barton, Dr. Victor E. Berch-
told, Judge R. H. Hanna, Judge Henry A. Kiker, Frank
Chase, Robert Nordhaus, Haniel Long and Leslie A. Gil-
lett.— P.A.F.W.
Bemhardt Robert Britton, who died at Albuquerque
on May 13, 1944, was born in San Jose, California, on April
25, 1877. After completing grammar school he attended
Teachers' Normal School at San Jose, University of the
Pacific at College Park, and the College of Physicians and
Surgeons at San Francisco, taking general and scientific
courses in preparation for a medical degree. However, on
May 31, 1898, during the Spanish-American War, he enlisted
in the United States Hospital Corps at Presidio, Calif.,
from which he was honorably discharged in January, 1899.
In August, 1901, he took up his residence at Arlington,
Washington, where for a number of years he taught school,
farmed and managed a hotel. In 1906, he attended Acme
Business College in Seattle. His love of travel and adven-
ture took him to Yukon Territory, where as a "sour-dough"
he roughed it for three years. In 1920, came his appointment
NECROLOGY 259
by the United States Department of Agriculture as game
protector for the State of New Mexico but duties assigned
to him took him into Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana on wild
game investigations. He took up his residence in Socorro in
1923 but on August 22, 1933, he became an employe of the
U. S. Forest Service and moved to Albuquerque. On Janu-
ary 9, 1935, he was admitted to practice in the New Mexico
and United States courts, but he remained with the Forest
Service until his death.
Mr. Britton was a Mason, a Knights of Pythias and a
member of Max Luna Chapter of Spanish-American War
Veterans. He was married in Mount Vernon, Washington,
December 5, 1903, to Ethel J. Stevens, who survives him.
— P.A.F.W.
John Wcdz Catron, eldest of the four sons of the late
U. S. Senator Thomas B. Catron and Julia Walz Catron, died
at St. Vincent's Sanitarium in Santa Fe May 14, after a brief
illness.
John Catron was born in Santa Fe, February 4, 1878.
He attended school abroad and later Phillips Andover Acad-
emy, St. John's Military Academy and the U. S. Naval Acad-
emy at Annapolis, Md., resigning from the last named after
two years attendance. From Columbia University he re-
ceived the degree of mining engineer.
At the outbreak of the Spanish-American war he
returned from Berlin, Germany, where his mother and chil-
dren were sojourning, and was commissioned first lieuten-
ant of the First New Mexico Territorial regiment, having
organized his own company. Upon conclusion of the war
he was presented by his men with a saber.
Catron then became associated with the Phelps Dodge
mining interests in Chihuahua, Mexico, but prior to 1910
moved to Los Angeles, where he established the Catron-Fiske
Airplane Company making biplanes with ply-wood cabins, a
pioneer concern in that branch of industry. He established
the first commercial air line on the Pacific Coast between
Los Angeles and Santa Barbara. In 1923 he established the
Orchard Camp with seventy cabins in Santa Fe.
260 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
Catron married Virginia Foltz on November 23, 1919,
in Los Angeles, who survives him, as do his three brothers,
Judge Charles C. Catron, Col. Thomas B. Catron and Attor-
ney Fletcher Catron, all of Santa Fe.
Funeral services were held May 16, and the remains
were taken to the Albuquerque Crematory. Pallbearers
were Chief Justice Daniel K. Sadler of the State Supreme
Court, Federal Judge Colin Neblett, Judge Edward R.
Wright, Judge John C. Watson, Col. S. W. Anding, Bernard
S. Spitz, R. V. Boyle and LeRoy Manuel.— P.A.F.W.
The Historical Society of New Mexico
(INCORPORATED)
Organized December 26, 1859
PAST PRESIDENTS
1859 — COL. JOHN B. GRAYSON, U. S. A.
1861 — MAJ. JAMES L. DONALDSON, U. S. A.
1863 — HON. KIRBY BENEDICT
adjourned sine die, Sept. S3, 1863
re-established Dec. X7, 1880
1881 — HON. WILLIAM G. HITCH
1883 — HON. L. BRADFORD PRINCE
1923 — HON. FRANK W. CLANCY
1925 — COL. RALPH E. TWITCHELL
1926 — PAUL A. F. WALTER
OFFICERS FOR 1944-1945
PAUL A. F. WALTER, President
PEARCE C. RODEY, Vice-President
LANSING B. BLOOM, Corresponding Secretary
WAYNE L. MAUZY, Treasurer
Miss HESTER JONES, Recording Secretary
FELLOWS
PERCY M. BALDWIN EDGAR L. HEWETT
RALPH P. BIEBER FREDERICK W. HODGE
LANSING B. BLOOM J. LLOYD MECHAM
HERBERT E. BOLTON THEODOSIUS MEYER, 0. F. M.
MARION DARGAN FRANK D. REEVE
AURELIO M. ESPINOSA FRANCE V. SCHOLES
CHARLES W. HACKETT ALFRED B. THOMAS
GEORGE P. HAMMOND PAUL A. F. WALTER
CONSTITUTION
OF THE
HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF NEW MEXICO
(As amended Nov. 25, 1941)
Article 1. Name. This Society shall be called the Historical Society
of New Mexico.
Article 2. Objects and Operation. The objects of the Society shall
be, in general, the promotion of historical studies; and in particular,
the discovery, collection, preservation, and publication of historical
material especially such as relates to New Mexico.
Article 3. Membership. The Society shall consist of Members, Fel-
lows, Life Members and Honorary Life Members.
(a) Members. Persons recommended by the Executive Council
and elected by the Society may become members.
(b) Fellows. Members who show, by published work, special
aptitude for historical investigation may become Fellows. Immedi-
ately following the adoption of this Constitution, the Executive
Council shall elect five Fellows, and the body thus created may there-
after elect additional Fellows on the nomination of the Executive
Council. The number of Fellows shall never exceed twenty-five.
(c) Life Members. In addition to life members of the Historical
Society of New Mexico at the date of the adoption hereof, such other
benefactors of the Society as shall pay into its treasury at one time
the sunt of fifty dollars, or shall present to the Society an equivalent
in books, manuscripts, portraits, or other acceptable material of an
historic nature, may upon recommendation by the Executive Council
and election by the Society, be classed as Life Members.
(d) Honorary Life Members. Persons who have rendered emi-
nent service to New Mexico and others who have, by published work,
contributed to the historical literature of New Mexico or the South-
west, may become Honorary Life Members upon being recommended
by the Executive Council and elected by the Society.
Article 4. Officers. The elective officers of the Society shall be a
president, a vice-president, a corresponding secretary, a treasurer, and
a recording secretary; and these five officers shall constitute the
Executive Council with full administrative powers.
Officers shall qualify on January 1st following their election, and
shall hold office for the term of two years and until their successors
shall have been elected and qualified.
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year, a nominating committee shall be named by the president of the
Society and such committee shall make its report to the Society at
the November meeting. Nominations may be made from the floor
and the Society shall, in open meeting, proceed to elect its officers by
ballot, those nominees receiving a majority of the votes cast for the
respective offices to be declared elected.
Article 6. Dues. Dues shall be $3.00 for each calendar year, and
shall entitle members to receive bulletins as published and also the
Historical Review.
Article 7. Publications. All publications of the Society and the selec-
tion and editing of matter for publication shall be under the direction
and control of the Executive Council.
Article 8. Meetings. Monthly meetings of the Society shall be held
at the rooms of the Society on the third Tuesday of each month at
eight P. M. The Executive Council shall meet at any time upon call
of the President or of three of its members.
Article 9. Quorums. Seven members of the Society and three mem-
bers of the Executive Council, shall constitute quorums.
Article 10. Amendments. Amendments to this constitution shall be-
come operative after being recommended by the Executive Council
and approved by two-thirds of the members present and voting at
any regular monthly meeting; provided, that notice of the proposed
amendments shall have been given at a regular meeting of the Society,
at least four weeks prior to the meeting when such proposed amend-
ment is passed upon by the Society.
Students and friends of Southwestern History are cordially in-
vited to become members. Applications should be addressed to the
corresponding secretary, Lansing B. Bloom, University of New Mexico,
Albuquerque, New Mexico.
^Mexico
Historical l^eview
PALACE OF THE GOVERNORS, SANTA
October, 1944
Editors
LANSING B. BLOOM PAUL A. F. WALTER
Associates
PERCY M. BALDWIN GEORGE P. HAMMOND
FRANK T. GHEETHAM THEODOSIUS MEYER, O.F.M
FRANCE V. SCHOLES
VOL. XIX OCTOBER, 1944 No. 4
CONTENTS
Page
Group of Mescalero Apaches (1908) Frontispiece
Indian Justice Irving McNeil 261
William Kronig, New Mexico Pioneer (concl.)
Chas. I. Jones (ed.) 271
A Lynching at Tucson in 1873 (written by J. G. Bourke) (concl.)
L.B.B. (ed.) 312
Friar Personnel and Mission Chronology, 1598-1629, I
France V. Scholes and Lansing B. Bloom 319
Juan Martinez de Montoya, Settler and Conquistador of
New Mexico .... France V. Scholes 337
Book Reviews:
Fulton (ed.) Diary and Letters of Josiah Gregg, II
P.A.F.W. 343
Dumke, The Boom of the Eighties in Southern California
L.B.B. 346
Necrology :
Miguel Antonio Otero, II . . . P.A.F.W. 349
Errata
Index
The NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW is published jointly by the Historical
Society of New Mexico and the University of New Mexico. Subscription to the
quarterly is $3.00 a year in advance ; single numbers, except those which have
become scarce, are $1.00 each.
Business communications should be addressed to Mr. P. A. F. Walter, State
Museum, Santa Fe, N. M. ; manuscripts and editorial correspondence should be
addressed to Prof. L. B. Bloom, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, N. M.
Entered as second-class matter at Santa Fe, New Mexico
UNIVERSITY PRESS, ALBUQUERQUE, N. M.
NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL
REVIEW
VOL. XIX OCTOBER, 1944 No. 4
INDIAN JUSTICE
By IRVING MCNEIL
IN ITS issue of January 25, 1908, the Cloudcroft Silver
Lining, a weekly then published in that delightful resort
in the Sacramento Mountains of southeastern New Mexico,
carried a news item about some recent killings. Casualties
included a cow that bore the brand of the Flying H outfit,
evidence of bovine aristocracy; a horse, Star of the West
by name ; and two men. One might almost think 'they were
listed in the order of their importance. The story was short,
because killings were not very infrequent in a country that
only lately had come under the influence of the law and a
good many of its inhabitants were men who were accus-
tomed to settle arguments in their own way and who had
either shot or been shot, or shot at, as many times as the
number of their fingers. That need not be as many as the
reader might imagine if, as a specimen for study, there
should be selected old Three-Fingered Charlie of the Mes-
calero Apache tribe on a nearby Indian Reservation, victim
of an affair where his opponent may have aimed well but
not wisely. Of this, friends of the fighters could judge
according to their prides and prejudices. At any rate old
Charlie had his life left but had to worry through it with
only three fingers — scarcely enough to thumb his nose
effectively.
It is on the Reservation mentioned that our story be-
gins, a story which soon after the turn of the century was
disposed of by the local weekly with a dozen or so lines,
but which, when told now in well authenticated detail, may
261
262 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
interest many. It is a story involving some unusual features
and bringing out capabilities of the red race little known
and appreciated by the whites. It is a story of the Indian,
his physical endurance, his hard riding, hard walking, and
doing without food, his ability to keep warm in severe
weather without shelter, with little clothing and without
fire, and his remarkably high development of the special
senses, particularly those of sight and hearing. It is a
story of his ability to get results without the aid of many
of the well known laboratory methods or instruments of
precision but simply by using his native; faculties and finally
examples of his almost uncanny ability to follow a trail
where to the uninitiated there is no trail, and possibly an
inkling of what may go on inside his skull.
Odd as it may seem, Indians, who for so many genera-
tions have lived by the chase, prefer beef to venison. It
was long a custom for them to kill deer and bring them in
to the trader's store and trade them for beef pound for
pound. But Indiana even on their reservations are required
to observe the game laws and are not allowed to kill deer
out of season. It was this restriction, together with the
former custom of leasing grazing lands on Indian reser-
vations to white cattle-owners, that led to the chain of
events here recorded.
In this case it was the Flying H outfit, owned by S. S.
Ward, now retired and living in Artesia, New Mexico, that
ran its cattle over the Reservation in a huge pasture fifteen
miles across and surrounded by a barbed-wire fence. This
range was under the supervision of Mr. Ward's foreman,
Roy McLane, who himself now has one of the best ranches
in Eddy County, on the Pecos River, where he lives com-
fortably, being one of the finest types of the rugged indi-
vidual with iron-grey "hair and classic features as if chiseled
by a sculptor of the Greek gods.
On one of his usual daily rounds over the range, Roy
McLane noticed tracks where some cattle had passed through
the pasture gate near the Mescalero Agency. He knew the
INDIAN JUSTICE 263
cattle were at large in the "unoccupied" portion of the
Reservation but lacking time then to hunt them up and
drive them back he returned to his home at Elk Spring
fourteen miles away and next day sent his brother, Don,
a youth of eighteen, to track the cattle down and bring
them in.
Although Don's formal schooling had been limited, it
should be said that this young man had been well instructed
in the school of experience and had taken full advantage
of his opportunities. Having been born on a ranch it might
be said that his cradle was the saddle and it is not unlikely
that as a baby he jingled his father's spurs instead of a
rattle and might have shared his nursing bottle with the
dogies. At any rate he never had to walk to school when
there was a horse in the corral and ithe bridle rein was one
of the first tools of his trade that he learned to handle. His
school house was the corral and his play ground the open
range. A vocational school it was where his teacher "learned
him to wrangle horses and try to know them all." His home
work was done about the camp fire at night where he lis-
tened to the older men talk and absorbed iall that they said.
As he passed from grade to high school, in lieu of basket-
ball there were races with wild steers where, instead of
trying to put an object through a ring, the goal was to
throw a ring of rope over the horns of the object. In lieu
of football with the line to be held there was the bawl of
the thundering herd on stampede, a force a thousand times
stronger than any football line but one that had to be
stopped and held. Don was one of the team that always
"got them milling and kind of quieted down" when "it taken
all of us to hold them in."
This was the background behind the boy who blithely
rode forth that Sunday morning of January 12, 1908, to
carry out the instructions of his foreman to bring the cattle
back. Arriving at the Mescalero Agency he was seen in
the trader's store and post office by Percy Bigmouth, an
Indian boy who helped about there, and later as he rode
264 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
down Tularosa Canyon he was seen by Paul Blazer at the
old Bazer watermill where grist had been ground out for
two generations. That was the last time he was seen alive
by a white person as he followed the cattle trail into the
rough and wooded mountains.
Young Don soon realized that the cattle which were
being followed had not merely wandered away for he ob-
served the tracks of a horse that had been keeping right
along with them and this went to verify what Roy McLane
had suspected the day before that the cattle had not gotten
out of the pasture by accident. They had been driven ! Don's
exultation might be imagined as he spurred his horse for-
ward and bent over the animal's neck the better to see the
tracks, for this kind of work was right up his trail.
That night Don McLane did not return home and Roy
knew that something was wrong. There had been time
enough for him to have rounded up the cattle, even though
they were several miles away, and to have gotten home — and
mid-January weather precluded any idea of his sleeping out
on the range.
The next day Roy McLane himself took up the trail
and followed it but had to give it up when night overtook
him. Again the next day he searched. He recognized the
track of the horse his brother had ridden because he him-
self had shod the horse and put on extra long* shoes. It is
common for men of the range to be able to recognize their
horses by their tracks — whether shod, only half shod or
barefoot, or with some peculiarity of the hoof.
On Wednesday Roy took with him two Indians, expert
trailers, and determined to follow through on the trail.
They soon discovered that besides the cow tracks there
were the tracks of two horses, one shod as described and
another barefooted. Their next discovery after a few miles
was the horse that had been ridden by Don which stood
saddled with the bridle rein entangled in a bush where the
horse had wandered and had been browsing. Leading this
horse and continuing the trail they came to the top of the
INDIAN JUSTICE 265
mountain ridge opposite the Bent mine and about six miles
west of the Mescalero Agency. Following along the ridge
they soon found a partly butchered beef! Then, the body
of the young man shot through the head and frozen stiff!
When the stiffened body of the young man had been
lifted on to the extra horse and tied securely, Roy gave
directions to the Indians to bring the body down to the
highway and on to the Agency while he took the shortest
route back to report the matter to Superintendent James
A. Carroll and through him to Sheriff H. M. Denny in
Alamogordo.
Thursday they returned to the scene where the young
man had been killed and attempted to trace the slayer.
They found that after killing the boy he had ridden his
horse off in a northwesterly direction toward an uninhabited
section, and after proceeding for some miles had tied his
horse and crept back along the side of his own trail and
laid in wait on the theory that the cowpuncher who had
been killed had not been working alone but that his partner
would soon be along and would attempt to follow the slayer
and he also must be put out of the way. This was done
twice and so the trail continued far afield and for many
miles from where the slayer actually had his camp. And
so that day and the next went by.
In the meantime, Superintendent Carroll, at Mescalero,
had not been idle. Mr. Carroll, besides administering the
affairs of the government in a most efficient manner, enjoyed
the confidence of the Indians to an extraordinary degree.
It had been his custom to hold regular councils with the
chiefs — grave old Magoosh, thoughtful Peso, and the dash-
ing young Sans Peur — to discuss matters concerning the
Indians and to listen to their grievances, if any. Likewise,
he was accustomed to call on the chiefs for assistance when
they could be of help.
So in this emergency when Roy McLane brought in the
report of what had happened Mr. Carroll immediately went
266 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
into action. Skipping the pipe and the bowl (though not
averse to them on appropriate occasion), he called for his
chieftains three. With them he had a general round-up of
the Indians and effort was made to establish the where-
abouts of each one on the preceding Sunday. All were
accounted for except one — deaf, one-eyed Kit-i-chin. It
was a case of absenteeism.
Ordinarily after such a matter as killing among the
Indians themselves, all the superintendent had to do was
to notify the chiefs that those connected with the affair
should be brought in and the next day they would appear
either voluntarily or otherwise. But in this case nothing
happened. It was reported by the other Indians that Kit-
i-chin was not in his camp, that since the night following
the bringing of the body down from the mountain, within
sight of his camp, neither Kit-i-chin nor his squaw, had
been seen: they had left the Reservation.
Later it was learned through the story told by Kit-i-
chin to his squaw — for he was the slayer — that he had
killed the beef and was butchering it when he was dis-
covered. If he had heard any one approaching which he
did not because of his deafness, he probably would have
run off, but when young McLane came upon him he had
approached from the Indian's blind side. Not being armed,
the young man had drawn a small ax which had been
strapped on his saddle and with more zeal than prudence
had ridden right up on the Indian, doubtless expecting him
to surrender. Instead, startled as he was, the Indian grabbed
his rifle and shot him dead.
Something had to be done and it was wise old Magoosh,
friend of the white man, who suggested the solution. It
was that a posse of Indians be organized to take the trail.
Another Sunday had come before the posse was organ-
ized and ready to go and Kit-i-chin had three days start.
Old Magoosh shed tears when he realized that his advanced
years would prevent his taking the trail to carry out the
plan he offered, but he sent his son, Willie, a steady young
INDIAN JUSTICE 267
man educated in the government school and like his father
a friend of the white man.
Young Chief Sans Peur assumed command of the posse
and he took with him his brother, Crookneck, whose name,
though not so heroic, was none the less descriptive. In
fact, it might be observed in passing, Crookneck, as the
result of a deformity in early life, was the only Indian in
the tribe who always carried his head cocked just right to
sight a gun. Others were Sam Chino, Elmer Wilson, Willie
Comanche and such colorful figures as Muchacho Negro
and Dana Evans who some years before had together done
a stretch for killing old man Tobacco, another Indian, and
Antonio Joseph who had likewise for a period maintained
residence at Santa Fe, the capital, and Caje about whose
exploits another story could be told — but suffice it to say
here that one night when he had escaped jail with his feet
shackled together and a bullet hole through one leg he had
managed to catch a horse, throw himself across its back
and ride fourteen miles over the mountains to a hideout.
Of such was the posse made up — twenty men, good and
true. Roy McLane and a deputy sheriff were with them
and later they were joined by a member of the state police.
The impression had been given that should the Indians fail
to do their duty the white population might be so aroused
that there would be further bloodshed.
It was believed that Kit-i-chin was headed for Mexico
and it was known that he had taken with him his squaw,
Jah-tah-da-tosh (meaning, "she trips herself") , whom he
needed to see the better for him and especially to hear for
him, and his horse, the afore-mentioned Star of the West.
The trail was taken up in the Nogal Canyon south of the
Agency and was followed steadily. On Tuesday they found
where the fleeing Indian had slain his horse, taken part
of the flesh for food and used the green hide to make moc-
casins the imprints of which would not be so easy to follow
as those of his shoes which had been thrown away.
Roy McLane said that his chief job was to act as com-
268 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
missary agent and that he undertook to provide the men
with food, buying it as he could from the nearest town.
"Otherwise," he said, "I mostly* just went along." He said
that the weather was very cold and that he managed to
find a house to stay in every night but one, and on that
night when he stayed out he had a "fiah" though it was
against the protest of the Indians who were afraid of
allowing their presence to be known.
The country in which this pursuit was being made is
a very rough one. The Sacramento Mountains, extending
in a northerly and southerly direction, rise gradually from
the Pecos Valley until the backbone of the range is reached
at more than 8,000 feet and then drop off abruptly on the
western slope which is characterized by high, buttress-like
ridges separated by deep canyons with steep cliffs. It was
crosswise these ridges and canyons that the trail led.
The Indians traveled about as much on foot as on horse-
back, the better, McLane thought, to see the faint traces
of moccasined feet but it was difficult for a white man to
understand much that they did. One thing was that every
once in a while they would all break and run back like
stampeding cattle and jabber among themselves. This, he
thought, might have been because there was danger of
ambush. They especially tried to keep him back which he
thought was done for his safety.
After several days when many miles had been covered
the Indians suddenly stopped trailing and simply stalled
around. The whites could get no satisfaction from them,
but after a while when some of the Indians went off in a
westerly direction — the trail had consistently kept to the
south — they were followed, only for the white men to find
that they had been led down to the flat desert country like
a road running out on the sand. The officers then realized
then they were no good there and went back to town.
Roy McLane was much discouraged. He had been going
along keeping the posse supplied with food the best he
could, trusting the Indians to get a job done that seemed
INDIAN JUSTICE 269
impossible for the sheriff's force, and now they had staged
a sit-down strike for no apparent reason. So feeling, he
left them and went to Alamogordo to spend the night and
bring more food the next day.
Continuing the story now as told by Willie Magoosh
who said that their best trailers were Antonio Joseph, the
human fox-hound — able to trail by moonlight — and Mu-
chacho Negro of whom more later: "After the white men
had all left us Chief Sans Peur call us together and say
we near the end of the trail. None of us had seen Kit-i-chin
but we know we see him pretty soon — just a little way.
"Sans Peur say, 'Caje,' and Caje say, 'Uhh-umY (gut-
tural equivalent of a snappy salute and a hearty "Aye, Aye,
Sir"). Then he say he want Caje to take half the men and
follow along a ridge and when it get dark wait long time,
and he would take other men and go other way. Pretty
soon we hear old Muchacho Negro call out to come on, boys.
Like bark of dog he say, 'Nishtishih, ishkeyendi !' He was
on hot trail.
"But I went with Caje. Caje say to spread out, four
go this way and four that way: if we stay in bunch he
might shoot us all. The sun was getting low but we look
out everywhere. Pretty soon we see something shiny, flash
in sun about mile away. We look good and see it was rifle
barrel and one man. Sans Peur's men had gone that way.
After dark we stop and wait, see nothing, hear nothing.
Pretty soon hear stick break and all get their guns ready.
Then we hear Sans Peur speaking to us. He say, 'We kill
that man/
"Next day Roy McLane come and take us all into Ala-
mogordo and give us big feed — lots of beef. Very cold
and that night we sleep on floor of court house. Mr. Ward
come and give each one of us twenty dollar gold piece —
twenty men, four hundred dollars !"
The pursuit had ended in Grapevine Canyon, a lonely
spot perhaps forty miles to the south and east of Alamo-
gordo. The Indians had had little food, could have no fire
270 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
because of the danger of making their presence known,
and were without protection from the weather except such
as their own ingenuity could devise. This was best described
by Roy McLane who said, "At night them Indians would
bed down in the pine needles like a bunch of hogs." This
simile can be appreciated by any one who has ever watched
a litter of little pigs bunch down together to sleep and has
observed how those on the periphery, not content to be
warm on one side only, keep rooting under and working
in toward the center at the expense of the fellows who
are warm on both sides and sleeping contentedly. Of course
it is not meant that the Indians do quite that: it is only
meant to show that they are adept at conserving animal
heat and by burrowing down in the leaves and staying close
together they can sleep through a cold night when more
aesthetic persons might not.
When Roy McLane returned to the posse he was sur-
prised to see an Indian woman and upon inquiry was told
that she was Kit-i-chin's squaw. " Where is Kit-i-chin?"
he wanted to know. "Over there," pointing. And so "over
there" on the other side of the hill was his body riddled
with bullets. And now Roy McLane understood the why
of the sit-down strike and why the officers had been lured
away to the sand flat and why the Indians had patiently
waited for him to leave for Alamogordo. There had been
no white man present to witness this final act in the drama.
It was the Indian way. And who is there that will say that
the Indian is not entitled to privacy in carrying out his
rituals in his. own way?
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER
from his memories of 1849-1860
(Concluded)
By CHARLES IRVING JONES
CHAPTER VIII
THE TOWN of Rio Colorado was built on high ground.
A large valley extended to the east, where were mead-
ows and farm lands. Opposite the town, where the valley
widens out to the west, the river came out of a deep canyon ;
at this point is where the La Port farm was located. La
Port had resided there for many years with his family,
including his two sons and son-in-law.39 They managed
their ranch as well as performed the major part of the
farm labor. However, they occasionally hired a few men
to help do the harvesting and do other heavy farm work.
These four men were, at all times, armed with their Hawkins
rifles; even when they irrigated the fields they carried
their weapons and also, a good supply of ammunition. In
this community it was necessary for everyone to be able
to muster a rifle or handle bows and arrows.
On this day, all the men gathered at the edge of the
hill where the town herd was grazing. The Indians were
already on the hilltops ; the horses and mules belonging to
the community were moving toward the canyon, where
the La Ports opened fire, wounding two Indians at their
first volley. The Leaders dismounted, picked up their two
wounded men and carried them off, leaving the horses and
mules they were driving. One of the Indians, more daring
than the rest, was completely cut off by the town people
and surrounded. I took a careful aim at him and was in
the act of pulling the trigger, when someone pushed my
gun up and the ball went into the air. "For God's sake,
don't kill him; he is the son of the rich Juan Vigil."40 I
could not see that that fact made any difference, as he was,
39. No data on the La Port family have been found elsewhere.
40. This "Juan Vigil" has not been identified.
271
272 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
in a sense, an Apache Indian. He wore the same dress and
acted like them and fired on his own countrymen. I believe
he would have killed some of his own people if his aim had
been straight. I voiced my opinion but the leaders of the
town would not listen to my argument.
This man was known as "The Gente, Son of the Rich,"
who knew how to read and write; but preferred the com-
pany of the Apaches to people of his own race. He had
committed depredations, murder, robbery and torture on
his own people, but because he was the son of the rich
Juan Vigil, was not punished.
We experienced robbery of stock every day and quite
frequently, murder, by the Apaches. They would sneak in
quietly, drive the stock away and if a herder protested they
would kill him. Many times the herders would be taken
with the stock, never to be seen again. One day a hunter
rode in and advised us that there was a small band of
Apaches within a few miles of the town. We organized a
party and started after them at once. When we reached
the spot indicated by the hunter, we found the camp-fire
still burning, but the Indians had gone. Knowing they were
not far, we gave chase and pushed them so hard that they
left six pack loads of prepared mescal, a drink made from
the bud of a cactus, which grows 300 miles to the south
along the Mexican border. We failed to get close enough
to fight them, but towards evening we captured a very foot-
sore horse, which was given to the man who was the poorest
among us, but we insisted that he have a mass said, for
what purpose I have forgotten ; but I believe it was to show
our gratitude to the Lord for having succeeded in overtaking
the Indians — but which we did not accomplish.
La Port was a Canadian by birth and when young
had been employed by a fur trading company on the Mis-
souri River. After working at this for awhile he gathered
experience and some money; then he became a free trader
and trapper. His advancing years had not dimmed his clear
eyes to any extent and his aim was still true. He could still
shoot and for a person of his age was active to a remarkable
degree.
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 273
I enjoyed many an evening listening to his adventures.
He seemed particularly strong on reciting experiences about
bears. I had very little opportunity to see many of this kind
of animal and was rather anxious to shoot one of them
myself. I persuaded him to go bear hunting with me; he
promised he would go as soon as the wild cherries were
ripe. The long-looked for time arrived and I armed myself
with a gun, blankets, hatchet and butcher knife and we
started up canyon to the closest patch of wild cherries. We
found a cherry patch, which the bears often used and sat
down to wait for them. It was getting toward evening just
about sundown, which came early in the afternoon in this
deep canyon. We saw a large grizzly bear amble up to a
cherry bush, sit on his haunches and begin to eat. La Port
squatted down, made a cross of two ramrods to get a steady
aim and fired. The ball struck the bear with a thud and an
unearthly howl rose in the air. The bear came straight at
us. The old man, knowing their nature from many en-
counters, ran up a short hill to where a pine tree stood and
he did not stop until he was safely up on its branches. The
bear crossed the river and stood on his haunches ; from the
shadow cast by the fast disappearing sun, his body seemed
30 feet long. I stood my ground for a time, but after he
started toward me, I lost my courage. I ran as fast as I could
to join my companion. In my race I threw my blankets,
hatchet, and lost the butcher knife. It was fortunate that
a tree was so close at hand, for I would have been overtaken
by this mad beast. I was soon among the protecting branches
of the tree. La Port could not see the movement of the bear
on account of the underbrush. We remained in the trees
for sometime until we felt satisfied that the bear had gone
his way. We came down and started a big fire which we
kept burning all night. In the morning we made a search
for the bear but the only evidence we found was my blankets
torn to pieces; his teeth marks were on the handle of the
butcher knife and hatchet. We were frightened and did
not care to make a thorough search, fearing that we might
run onto him or another bear in the underbrush, so we
went home. My experience taught me not to hunt grizzly
274 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
bears and I came to the conclusion that the guns, then in
use, would not kill a bear with one shot because of the
distance the gun was fired.
Here I went into farming. A friend loaned me a piece
of land and having obtained a mule in a trade, I set to work
preparing a harness from some leather an Indian had tanned
for me. In place of using a yoke and collar, I made the
harness with a breast strap similar to the kind used in buggy
harnesses. After I had completed this task satisfactorily,
I engaged a native laborer to plant corn. The plowing was
next in line ; so with the aid of this man, I gathered a forked
tree, fastened a piece of white oak timber to make a point,
tied it to the fork with raw-hide and covered the shear
point with the same material. The growing season was
good and water was in abundance; so before long, during
the summer, the corn grew to a fair height. I would care-
fully walk over the field and admire the products of my
labor. One day I noticed that a number of the roasting
ears were gone. I noticed that this robbery was continuing
so I set a trap for the thief. I was waiting, concealed in a
patch of brush near the field, when just at sundown I saw
a boy of about 14 years of age enter the field, fill his sack
with roasting ears, then start away. It was here that I
halted him, covering him with my gun. I questioned him
as to why he was stealing my corn. He cried and said, "Do
not shoot, I am poor." I questioned him further and found
that he was a peon belonging to one of the richest men in
the town named Rodrigo Vigil. He had been engaged as
horse herder, but he had lost a horse and was afraid to go
home as his employer had threatened to kill him if he did
not find it. He had been robbing my fields for ten days,
but what else could he do ; he had to eat. He was still crying
when I took him home to supper and gave him a bed. After
he had gone to sleep I went to see this Senior Vigil to find
out what troubled the boy and if it was possible to help
him. If he owed money, I intended paying his bill and then
hire him to help me in my store.
Senior Vigil explained the boy's situation to me. The
account ran about this way: Isidro Trujillo, father of the
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 275
boy, was indebted to Rodriguez Vigil to the following extent :
1 fanega of wheat (about 125 pounds) for
4 fanegas in the fall, (and as this was not
paid for, they were loaned out for 16 fanegas
next fall) and as this was not paid, they were
loaned out for 64 fanegas at $1.50 $96.00
Less Credit six months service at $1.00 per
month 6.00
Balance $90.00
I refused to release the boy to Mr. Vigil, and he brought
suit against me in the local court. I had been doing some
reading and had been able to obtain one of Kearny's Stat-
utes, in which I found that the legal interest was placed at
6 per cent. After calling the Alcalde's attention to this
important record, he decided in my favor and the boy be-
came a free agent. I was thanked over and over again for
my protection of the poor. After getting over his angry
spell, Mr. Vigil became a good friend of mine, but I always
suspicioned that he was afraid I would interfere with
some other poor creatures he held in bondage.
I was fully aware that the peon law was almost equal
to slavery in its worst form. The peon would earn about
$2.50 a month, sometimes less; these small wages were
stopped as soon as the harvest was over in the fall and
occasionally the employer would give him a few days work
during the winter on the record book. The days would be
marked and the wages were paid at the rate indicated above.
These peons were generally married ; they never could hope
to cancel their debt and generally remained in servitude
all their lives. The employers would sometimes give these
people some land to plant and charge them for the seed,
such as one almord [almud~\ of peas for twelve dollars, and
sometimes one-half almord of horse beans for about the
same price, but this consideration was not the general rule.
One day a well-dressed Mexican rented my store from
sundown to midnight for a certain sum. I assumed that
he was a juggler and was showing for that evening; after
sundown he opened up his Monte bank game. The men of
276 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
the town all gathered around and before long the game was
in progress. The men gambled and lost and before mid-
night the gambler had cleaned out all the available money,
some sheep, cattle and horses, as well as goats and houses.
When at last midnight came, I insisted on closing up as
per agreement. I had a little argument but I succeeded in
cleaning them out and closing up for the night. The next
day the accounts had to be squared, stock of all kinds
became cheap, and even houses changed hands below their
accustomed value.
When I bought my store, I asked the owner what the
house was worth and he was quite surprised at my question,
telling me to count the joists and that each of them was
worth a dollar and no account was taken of the ground it
rested on. The better houses, which were built of split
cedar over the joists for ceiling boards, made by splitting
logs of 6 foot length and then planeing them, were valued
at two dollars a joist. The house roofs were all covered
with earth and were very suitable to this New Mexico
climate. I do not remember seeing a shingle-roofed house
while I was there.
Just to show you that ill-gotten gains were not always
profitable, the gamblers drank a lot that night and next
morning became quite liberal with their money. One of
the gamblers, while in this drunken condition, called at
my store. I was waiting on some other customers and did
not notice what he was doing; after I finished with my
customer he had gone. I looked over the store and found
that he had taken a silk reboza (a narrow shawl, worn by
all well dressed Mexican women, over their heads). The
value of this shawl was about $25.00 and being the only
one I had in stock, I quickly noticed it was gone.
I was angry, of course, and went immediately in search
of him. Finding him was a small matter, as he was just
in the act of putting the shawl on the shoulders of a pretty
Mexican woman, of dubious reputation. With the assistance
of some of my friends, I arrested him, and hauled him before
the alcalde. It was rather a difficult matter for the Alcalde,
as he had no written laws in his office and he did not know
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 277
just how to sentence the Mexican. He was in a muddle and
did not know how to perform his duties as Justice of the
Peace. He called me into his private office for consultation,
and asked my advice as to what punishment he should give
this gambler. I advised him to have the man publicly
whipped, and then ordered out of the precinct. He accepted
my advice and when sentence was pronounced, the gambler
jumped to his feet, shouting that we could not whip him
because he was able to pay a big fine; but the Alcalde's
mind was made up and he ordered the Constable to take
the man into the middle of the street and whip him, after
which to escort him out of town.
The whipping was done with the whole town as witness.
The gambler screamed after the first blow was struck and
continued his bellering until the whipping was completed.
He was stripped to the waist and lashed severely. How-
ever, the blows did not cut the skin. I do not think the
whipping was to be compared with those performed in
other parts of the world, but it was a powerful lesson to
him and others in the community.
CHAPTER IX
Viereck, my friend of earlier days in Santa Fe, rode
into town coming from Taos. I was agreeably surprised
to see him. However, after a few days, his visit appeared
to be extending into a lengthy stay. I saw that he was
without money and endeavored to put him at his ease. I
suggested that we live together, he to do the cooking and
I to furnish the food. This seemed to be satisfactory with
him. I quit my boarding place and we opened our bachelor
quarters. Things went on nicely for awhile, but Viereck's
roving spirit began to show and he became restless and
could not reconcile himself for any length of time. To be
a subordinate, a cook, was degrading to him. He was for-
ever formulating schemes in which he was to become rich.
His dreams and schemes seemed to go together. However,
he sometimes produced and executed some very remarkable
arrangements.
After he had been cooking for sometime, he gained the
278 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
consent of La Port, the leading citizen, and called a mass
meeting of all the town's people. He addressed them very
fluently in Spanish, reproaching them for having a church
built without any adornments or paintings; he explained
that it was a sacred duty to make their church look like the
house of God, ending his short speech with the remark
that he would paint a picture on canvas of the twelve
apostles, for the sum of one hundred and sixty dollars.
It was not difficult for the money to be raised, as La
Port, Beaubien and myself each headed the list with five
dollars donations and before the night was over, the list
was complete. However, a large majority of the people
made their signatures by a cross after the secretary had
entered their names on the list. Money was scarce so it
became necessary for most of the people to make their
payments of country, farm and other produce. It was
agreed that the prevailing rates would be the means of
determining the value of each article; buffalo robes, buck
skins, furs, cattle, horses, mules, sheep and goats comprised
some of the articles offered in payment. All were accepted
and I did my share in trying to make the painting a success.
Viereck went to work with a vim; rented a room for
a studio, purchased twenty yards of bleached domestic,
sewed it together and began to paint the twelve apostles.
The matter of colors was rather a puzzle, but a man of his
resources was far from being defeated by such a small
matter. He searched the material at hand and decided that
Indigo would serve for blue, Chocolate for brown, Soot
for black, Vermillion for red, and Saffran for yellow. From
here on he had to resort to the extracts from roots, wood,
and wild sage. This seemed to give him all the colors neces-
sary. In due time the painting was completed, the subscrip-
tions paid, with the exception of the three leading sub-
scribers, and a committee appointed. The picture was
accepted and hung in the church, where all could see it.
Viereck was not confident of his work, for one day
he informed me that a priest was coming to Rio Colorado
to say Mass on a certain day. He stewed around for days
and when the time approached for the priest's arrival, he
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 279
decided to leave; but he had no call for going on this
account, as the painting was quite above the artistic tastes
of the Holy Father, whose knowledge of paintings was very
little above the average of the natives. Years later, when
I returned to Rio Colorado, the picture was still on the
altar of the church.
A short time later I was called to Taos on business
and to my surprise Viereck had taken a pretty Mexican
girl to live with him. This being the custom of the country,
he believed in living accordingly. I could see that Viereck
had good taste, as he had chosen a very pleasant and delight-
ful girl. Mr. Mink, whom I have previously mentioned, was
indeed glad to see me. He had another source of happiness,
as he seemed to be very pleased with the purchase made
that day of twelve hens and one rooster. Viereck, who was
with me at the time of the meeting, remarked that he con-
sidered the money spent for the chickens thrown away,
because in this country of hungry people, it would not be
possible to keep them from being stolen. Mink remarked
he had thought all about that and described where he had
securely locked the birds up for the night. Soon after
Mink went on his way to the billiard hall, where he usually
spent his evenings^ Viereck grabbed a sack and went out,
leaving me with his woman, but he was not gone long.
When he did return he had the whole of Mink's chickens
sacked up. They were soon stripped of their feathers and
properly dressed, and before long were in different re-
ceptacles, boiling, roasting and stewing. This went on
until about eleven o'clock, when supper was ready. Viereck
heard Mink coming down the road whistling and went out
and invited him in to supper. The meal was excellent and,
as Viereck had prepared a bowl of punch, we remained
with him until the early hours.
Viereck, with his new responsibilities, had become a
man of work rather than of leisure. He was painting a
picture for the church entitled "Christ of the Cross," which
I thought was a creditable piece of work. On the strength of
this painting he received other orders and again began to live
and enjoy the good things that the country had to offer.
280 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
Mink never did find out where his chickens went to,
but it was not long until he left Taos, going to Santa Fe,
where he was elected Justice of the Peace, and C. P. Clever
was elected Constable. Mink's public service days did not
include any further advancement in the political world, but
Clever was elected Delegate to Congress. While they were
in office, a suit was brought into his court by some Mexicans
over water rights for irrigation purposes, in which a rancher
had dedicated to Saint Anthony and loaned to the Church
as defendant. The suit was decided against the rancher,
who was also charged the cost of the Court. Mink found
it impossible to collect, as nobody directly claimed to be
the owner of the land, and as a last resort, he issued a writ
of attachment to the land, which writ was properly executed
by bringing the image of Saint Anthony into his office. The
Sacrilegious Act raised an awful row, but was finally com-
promised by the priest and lawyer paying the cost.
My business had progressed very well and my collec-
tions were satisfactory. I had been given preference over
other creditors for some reason. The wheat was thrashed
on hard dirt floors, by using goats, horses and sheep to
separate the grain from chaff, after which the owners
would throw the mixture into the air, allowing the wind
to carry away the chaff and straw, leaving the grain. Then
I was called, so I could receive my grain before the other
creditors had been informed about the additional grain.
The transaction was generally at night and I would pack
my heavy Elk skin bags on my mules, together with two
or three buffalo robes, and after receiving my wheat, I
would stay the remainder of the night, providing myself
with a satisfactory bed with the robes I had with me.
After the wheat crops had been harvested and I had
sold most of the goods in my store, fall began to come on
and the weather was turning a little cold. One morning,
just at dawn, my neighbor, Charles Autuber,41 knocked on
41. In the diary of A. M. Gass, first published in 1859, Charlie Autobee was
then ranching on the west side of Huerfano river. He was called an old French
trapper; his wife was Mexican. His little settlement comprised about fifty persons,
mostly Mexicans. L. R. Hafen (ed.), Southwest Historical Series, xi, 228-229; ix,
102-103.
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 281
the door telling me to get up at once, that a long string of
Apache Indians were riding into town. Numerous times
before I had been informed, but usually it was just a false
alarm; this time I stayed in bed paying little attention,
until two Mexicans knocked loudly at the door shouting,
"the Apaches are coming." I hurriedly dressed and went
to the main street, where I found La Port, Autuber, and
Beaubien already in position holes in the Adobe wall, ready
to defend the community with their rifles. Looking to the
west, I saw a long string of mounted Indians coming toward
us; the leaders being about eighty to ninety yards away,
riding single file. I joined the group with my gun in hand.
We consulted and decided that Autuber, having been an
Old Indian fighter, was placed in charge. As they ap-
proached, we noticed that the first ten riders were not
Apache Indians but part of a Ute tribe that was at peace
with the Americans and Mexicans. However, as the column
drew near, we could see the Utes carried a Mexican wood
chopper in front of them for a shield. Autuber whispered
their names as they passed a small obstruction in the road
so that their horses were near broadside. The Utes noticed
us first and yelled for us not to shoot as they had come in
peace; that they, with the Apaches, were on their way to
Taos to sign a treaty of peace.
The Indians filed by us not fifty feet away, going to
the house of the Alcalde. We followed and after they had
explained their mission, the Alcalde appointed me secretary.
After the usual ceremony of smoking a pipe, the meeting
began and I made a record, which was a follows:
"Today, on such a Saint's Day, week of, month
of, and in the year of our Lord, one hundred twenty
Apaches and ten Utes asking for peace, entered
the precinct of Rio Colorado."
About this time, an Apache pulled my coat and when I
turned around he asked, in good Spanish, "Do you want
to trade? I have plenty of money." I turned my position
as secretary over to another man, and went with the Indian
to my store. The first article that met his eye was a sack
282 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL EEVIEW
of wheat meal, containing about twenty pounds. He offered
me a dollar which I readily accepted. The payment was
made in gold. I did not offer him any change and he did
not ask for any. The next article he purchased was some
red calico, which I had nailed around the wall; then came
a red woolen shirt, and then my saddle and bridle. By this
time the rest of the Apaches had wind of what was going
on and they, too, came to trade. However, I was rather
nervous as they all carried bows and arrows in their hands.
I decided to hire a reliable Mexican to help me issue the
goods. I stood back and bargained with him with my gun
in hand. When the trading ceased I did not have an article
left to trade with, but in their place I had seven hundred
dollars in gold, mostly Dubloons, two mules and a small
mountain of buffalo and buck skins. The trading consumed
about one and one-half hours; this included the time the
Indians appeared until the time they were out of sight.
We all gave a sign of relief as the last Indian rode over
the hill.
My stock entirely gone, I mounted one of the mules,
rode bareback with only a rope around the animal's neck
and my gun over my shoulder, to Arroyo Hondo, where
Mr. Quinn had a stock of goods. I spent the night with
him and after buying supplies, bridle and saddle, I prepared
to ride back to Rio Colorado. After packing the mule with
the goods I bought, I prepared to mount but was thrown
before I had hardly reached the seat of the saddle. His
night's rest had allowed all the meanness to come out.
However, I was fortunate, a bronco buster was there and
he gentled the animal for me in a short time, and I con-
tinued my journey back home. After a check up we found
that the Indians had left about twelve-hundred dollars in
the settlement. Three days after the Indians had visited
us about five hundred volunteer soldiers and a company of
regulars visited us, looking for the Apaches. After finding
out in which direction they had gone the soldiers followed,
overtaking them in a short distance and surprising them,
killing a squaw, captured their camp and some of their
stock. When they returned to Rio Colorado I recognized
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 283
many articles that I had traded. The Company Officer of
the expedition reproached us for having traded with the
Apaches while at war; but under the circumstances what
else could we do? We felt that we were fortunate that they
did not attack us; feeling that they were anxious to make
peace, and that the Justice of the Peace was a qualified
officer to make an agreement.
After several days the Indians had shown no signs
of returning; I decided to go to Taos on business. I rode
the trail full of ambushes, thinking nothing about the
dangers of an attack. I crossed a steep hill, but after going
a short distance I involuntarily stopped feeling very much
depressed as though something was about to happen. Hav-
ing no reason for the feeling, I returned to the river trail
and took the long way around fully five or six miles further.
The strange presentment did not leave me. I did not think
of any danger at the time but the depressed feeling continued
and when I reached Taos I was informed that a runner
had just come in with news that the Apaches had killed
two Mexicans about the same time I began to have the
depressed feeling.
While in Taos this time, I met Father Martinez, a
priest of the Catholic faith.42 The Father invited me to his
home and I can say I was kindly treated. This priest owned
a little printing press and was publishing a little paper,
El Crepusculo, which I believe was very appropriately
named. It was the first newspaper to be printed in New
Mexico ; however, it was short-lived, due to lack of support.43
It was unfortunate that a worthy endeavor of this kind
could not have survived. In his printing room I found
several books being printed. The priest was the superin-
tendent of the school and author of the school books. Sev-
42. He is referring, of course, to the famous Father Antonio Jose Martinez.
43. New Mexico's first little newspaper, El Crejn>.sculo de la Libertad, was pub-
lished in Santa Fe in the fall of 1834 for only five issues, — not in Taos as here stated.
It was not Father Martinez but Don Antonio Barreiro who was then seeking reelection
as deputy from New Mexico to the national congress in Mexico City ; and the press
was owned and operated by Don Ramon Abreu. We found, some years ago, con-
clusive proof of this in an autograph letter of Abreu to the Territorial Deputation, —
a letter which we called to the attention of Mr. Douglas McMurtrie and translated
for him — but which he later claimed himself to have found. Not before the eummer
of 1835 was the press being owned and operated by Father Martinez at Taos. — L.B.B.
284 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL EEVIEW
eral of my old friends from New Mexico received consider-
able education from these books. Father Martinez was
without a doubt the best educated and most capable priest
that I have been fortunate to know. He made a mistake
like others during this period of involving himself in the
revolution, which was brewing at that time. It took con-
siderable explaining for him to clear himself for his atti-
tude. I was amazed that he did not realize the utter im-
possibility of a revolution succeeding, with the United
States having complete control.
After the arrival of Bishop Lamy, Father Martinez's
privileges were gradually taken away from him.44 He had
enjoyed and kept a private chapel, and for a long time
afterwards a number of independents followed him. How-
ever, in time, these matters were adjusted. New Mexico,
in those days, was a perfect paradise for the Catholic Clergy.
Their morals must not have stood any higher than those
of their brethren during Luther's time. Every priest had
a housekeeper, and to give them due credit, I must say that
their taste in this respect was remarkable. They drank
the best native wine and many of them had acquired a
taste for stronger drink ; nearly all gambled and they were
present at all the game cock fights, in which their bets
were placed. They always had the best of horses. Their
fees were exorbitant, and many a father made a peon of
his boy in order to pay a funeral bill for some loved one.
The anointment was one-tenth of all the farm products
raised and one-hundredth part of all the lambs and calves.
In most instances, the Church collected a tax on every house-
hold of one barrel of corn, weighing about seventy pounds ;
one-half a fanega of wheat, or about sixty pounds, and the
expense of the annual feast or celebration in honor of the
local Saints, of which every community had several. A
few years after annexation to the United States, the taxa-
tion system nearly disappeared. A few lots of sheep which
I bought from Father Martinez plainly showed that con-
ditions had improved for the poor people.
44. Bishop Lamy arrived in 1851. Besides Martinez, he had trouble with several
others of the parish clergy whom he found here.
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 285
CHAPTER X
The Order of Penitents ruled supreme in all the towns
and better villages throughout this part of New Mexico.
Each society had a morada, a house, and near it could be
seen immense, roughly-built crosses, which the members
would drag about during the time of Lent to punish them-
selves. After Easter it was not difficult for me to tell
members from non-members. It was the custom for the
natives to come into the store and lean their backs to the
counter, facing the fire built in the huge fire place. I would
take a measuring stick, run it along their backs and when-
ever a man flinched I knew he was a Penitent. This custom
of self-torture brought many of these men, belonging to
this clan, together. I never was able to get into their meet-
ings and my questions regarding them netted nothing.
The summer had passed and fall was approaching.
The natives were getting ready to lay in a supply of molasses
for the year. The stocks [stalks] which did not bare corn
were bruised with mauls in long wooden troughs, then
slightly moistened and the juice extracted in a very simple
lever press. The pressure was brought about by mounting
men, women and children on the lever or beam. The ex-
tracted juice was boiled in large earthernware pots, set in
an adobe hearth, and dropped from one pot to another until
the juice was evaporated to the proper consistency and
then placed into receptacles for future use. In my estima-
tion, it was an unimportant article and the work spent on
it was a loss, as most of the mixture had a strong acid taste.
Some of the natives would boil this stuff until it had the
consistency of pitch, which did not improve it, but they
seemed to like the finished product.
As the winter approached, plenty of grey wolves would
be seen in the vicinity of the town. After the first snow
made its appearance and the rigor of the winter came in
earnest, it became dangerous to leave stock loose grazing
on the hills near the towns. During the most severe winters,
it has been known that wolves kill stock right in the middle
of the settlement. Most of the corrals were constructed
of cedar posts, with no regularity as to even size ; here and
286 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
there would be a high post and next to it a low one. The
wolves would kill the goats and sheep in these corrals;
one would pull the animal to the fence and the other one
from the outside would pull it over, and they would devour
the carcass right there.
I had purchased a number of hogs, which I fattened.
As there was no demand for them in Rio Colorado, I de-
cided to take them to Santa Fe, where I felt sure I could
find a ready market for them. I packed them on the backs
of mules and took them to market where I received as
high as $40.00 for some of the hogs. On my return trip
the snow began to fall ; when I was part way back on the
trail, which was covered with snow, I decided to camp for
the time being in the woods that I was traveling through,
as I was afraid of losing my way. While looking for a
suitable place, I found an old acquaintance camped under
some large trees with a supply of wood already at hand
and I joined him. I picketed my mules nearby and went
to work to gather a supply of gramma grass, cutting it
with my butcher knife. I wanted to be prepared, as I
remembered the experiences in snow storms while with
the volunteers. We both had intended going to Embudo,
at which point we could borrow some camping utensils so
we could prepare our meals. However, we fell short of our
goal and our lot fell to devise something to prepare food
in. The camp was well protected by windbrakes, thick
groves of trees, and the abundance of fire wood made us
feel that we could weather the storm. To prepare our food
was a problem. We had nothing but some parched corn
meal, a little salt, and some mutton tallow. We were ready
for the emergency, however; my acquaintance, Padilla by
name, took one of his sheep hides, carefully cleaned it, then
placed some clean snow on the sheep pelt, cuffing it down
to hold water. We already had some rocks heating on the
fire. As we added the rocks the snow melted and it was
but a short time until the water was nearly boiling; we
then added the salt to taste, followed by the parched corn
meal, stirring it until the meal, or mush, became a thick
enough consistency that it could be cut. It was a very
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 287
palatable mess of Chaguihin, or stiff mush.45 We cut and
ate it with satisfaction. The snow kept falling; after dark
the wolves made themselves known by their howls, and
toward midnight was mixed with the braying of our mules.
We had turned them loose so that they could have a fighting
chance. It was next morning that we found out that some
of them did not even have that fighting chance, for seven
of our mules had been killed and eaten. The snow storm
abated and we went on our way to Embudo and Rio Colo-
rado.
The Mexicans, up to this time, were not acquainted
with poison ; I had purchased several bottles while in Santa
Fe, which was the first poison used in that part of New
Mexico. The dozen bottles netted me many wolf and coyote
skins and I found a ready market for them. Their quality
was good on account of several cold winters. However, the
wolves became very bold and in an isolated sheep camp
they actually dragged a very old man out of bed by his
heels and would have devoured him if his cries had not
attracted the attention of one of the other men in camp.
On one occasion I went out on the hills near the edge
of town for a walk, taking my gun with me. While walking
along, I encountered a band of forty or fifty large, grey
timber wolves. I felt brave with my gun in hand and walked
toward them, thinking they would be frightened ; but they
stood their ground, not retreating an inch but just looked
at me. Noting this, I began to retreat carefully, keeping
near to the larger pine trees for fear that they would attack
me. I knew if I climbed a tree the wolves would keep me
there until I froze to death. I went home and spent a rest-
less night, dreaming of wolves and trees. A few days later
I ventured out again just to the edge of town; the snow
was deep and I waded through the unbroken crust to the
near-by hillside, where stood a high adobe house, with a
ladder by the side of it. The house, a remnant of earlier
days, was abandoned. Across an arroyo I saw a large
45. The name, doubtless of Indian origin, has probably been misread from the
original notes. Kercheville, Preliminary Glossary of New Mexico Spanish, 47, has
"chaquehue."
288 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
panther wandering- along looking for food. I drew bead
and fired. My shot struck him in the foreleg. He was
knocked to the ground but quickly sprang to his feet and,
looking around, sighted me and with a fierce, painful cry,
he came after me. I quickly looked the other way and seeing
the ladder I ran for it and climbed to the flat roof of the
house. I started to pull it up just as the panther reached it.
He grabbed for the ladder and I thought he was going to
cling to it but I shook him loose and pulled it up. I could
see that the bullet had broken his leg and he seemed to be
in great pain. I reloaded my gun intending to finish him
but before I was ready to shoot he moved away, still growl-
ing. I wandered around on the roof and after a while
descended, going back to town as fast as I could. A few
hours later I met La Port and described my experiences
to him. He told me a story of an experience his son had
while hunting. The boy had wounded a panther and did
not have time to reload before the panther was upon him ;
fortunately for him there was a pine tree near at hand and
he ran for it with the panther following closely and they
began to round the tree. The boy moved as fast as his legs
could carry him and once or twice the seat of his pants
were scratched or ripped. The panther had been severely
wounded and after a few rounds of the tree he died from
loss of blood. It was lucky for him that the panther passed
out when he did, as the boy was just about on his last legs.
However, he skinned the panther and made his way for
home. Panthers have peculiar traits; they seldom attack
people except when they have been wounded ; they will kill
a sheep, goat or some animal and eat their fill, then con-
ceal the carcass with leaves, branches of trees, or twigs
and remain in the vicinity until all the meat is gone.
The Utes would come into town frequently to buy
grain, ammunition and offer in exchange buck skins, moun-
tain sheep or elk skins and frequently buffalo robes. Their
furs and skins were of a better quality than the skins ob-
tained in the prairie country as the mountains were colder
and the winter extended over a longer period. The furs
were dark, glossy and rich in appearance.
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 289
On one occasion I bought a fine horse from Ouray, son
of the Ute Indian Chief.46 After fattening him with grain,
hay, and other things, another Indian claimed him as his
property, saying that the first Indian had no business to
sell him and wanted me to return the animal. I refused
and the Ute brought suit in the Alcalde's court, where the
evidence was so overwhelming in favor of the Ute that
I gave up in disgust and allowed him to take the horse.
Years later, I gave a Major an order on this particular
Ute for a horse in payment of the money I had owed him ;
the Utes had moved further into Colorado and I never
found out if the order was honored. The Utes and the
prairie Indians kept up a continual war with one another.
The Utes generally being in the majority had the advantage ;
all had good rifles and were excellent shots. This was
accounted for by the fact that the prairie Indians hunted
buffalo with smooth bore guns, shooting them at close
range from a horse, by riding along side and firing; while
the Utes were mountain Indians, and their game or food
consisted of smaller animals and shooting under different
conditions.
A successful raid made by the Ute Indians, induced
a party of Indian traders to go to a village about 25 miles
distant to trade. I joined the party. I loaded my mules
with the following: a few shirts, butcher knives, Mexican
bridles, bits and vermillion. My companions, all old traders,
had a decided advantage by being able to speak enough
of the Ute language to make themselves understood. In
order to be equal in the trading, I proposed that nobody
interfere in any trade ; I also proposed that a fine of $20.00
46. This statement is perplexing, but apparently when Kronig was writing he
did not realize that he was reminiscing about Ouray himself instead of his father.
Kronig's statement, as it stands, is simply impossible.
There seems to be no question that Ouray was born in the year 1833. His father
was Guerra Murah, a Jicarilla Apache (captured as a boy and adopted by the Utes),
and his mother was a Tabaguache Ute. Born at Abiquiii and growing to young manhood
there and in the Taos country, Ouray earned his living as a sheep herder and in
other ways, and he absorbed the white man's way of life. But in his late teens, he
turned definitely to the Indian way ; he became a Ute warrior and by the 1860's he
was the greatest of Ute chiefs.
Ouray had only one son who, as a child of six years, was carried off by Arapahoe
enemies in the year 1863.
290 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
be imposed on any trader who violated this agreement. We
all were in accordance with this arrangement. When we
reached the Indian camp we each selected separate locations
near the village and waited for customers. I did fairly
well in my trading; I was able to purchase three good horses
that had been stolen from the Arapahoes, as well as suf-
ficient robes and buck skins, that brought me more than
enough to cover the cost of my whole outfit. I took the
horses across the mountain. Later they were recognized
by their former owners, the Arapahoes, but were not
claimed; they agreed that inasmuch as I had purchased
them I was the rightful owner and that they were spoils
of war. The Utes told me to turn my horses loose; I pre-
ferred to have them tied, but the next morning when I looked
for them they were gone. I later found them with their
ropes gone among the Indian horses. When I complained
about the theft, they laughed and said that the joke was
on me, that everything was safe in their village, and it
served me right to lose my ropes for not having trusted
them.
I noticed a couple of small lodges on the outskirts of
the village and asked the meaning of it. They advised me
that the lodges belonged to women of bad reputation, who
were not allowed in the village.
After this trip I felt that I could be successful in
trading with other Indians and proceeded to wind up my
business at Rio Colorado. I had sold nearly all my stock,
and delivered the grain I had agreed to; I then returned
the small store of goods left to Mr. Quinn and began my
preparations to make a trading trip into the Arapahoe and
Cheyenne country.
The party consisted of Beaubien and Leblanc, both
Canadians who had worked for fur companies on the Yel-
lowstone, several Mexican traders and myself; about 25
men in all, with 60 pack animals, loaded with our stock in
trade : parched cornmeal, hard bread, beans and sweet corn
mixed, dried pumpkins, piloncillows,47 a dark sugar in
47. James Joeiah Webb, a trader to Santa Fe who crossed the plains in 1844,
mentions a Le Blanc as one of his companions. (R. P. Bieber (ed. ), Southwestern
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 291
little loafs, Mexican bridle, bits, a few silver mounted head
stalls, and a few Navajo blankets.
The first day we went only a few miles in order to
test the saddles and adjust the packs properly. Our first
meal was made of hard bread, boiled with a little fat and
red peppers, which made a very substantial meal. We
continued to eat this dish for another day, when one of the
hunters brought in a couple of fat, black-tail deers; after
this we changed to Atole, thin mush made of roasted meal,
and meat. Coffee was a luxury hardly known among the
Mexicans in those days. A few days travel brought us to
Sangre de Christo range, where our hardship commenced
in earnest.
The snow was very deep; no trails could be seen, as
we were the first to pass over the mountains that winter.
The only way we could make any progress was to travel
on the mountain side, facing the south where the snow
was partly melted off. The going was difficult and at every
little gully we would have to stop and prepare a crossing
or travel up toward the head of the wash. There were no
bridges, but in numerous places we made them by cutting
pine boughs and filling the little ravines, after which we
carried the packs across, then lead the animals over by
making a footing for them with our robes and blankets;
even then some of the animals would shy away and dis-
appear in the snow, which caused us a great deal of work
digging them out of the snow drifts.
Many days we did not make a half a mile; finally, we
made it through to the summit, taking us eight days to
travel a distance not exceeding ten miles ; here we were
stopped by a huge drift. It took us another day to beat the
snow down so that our animals could cross. Improvised
sleds were brought into use to cross our packs, as the dis-
tance was too far to carry them ourselves.
From the top of this summit the view of mountains
Historical Series, i, 47). In 1849, Le Blanc was living at Rio Hondo on "a place
formerly owned by Turley the American." (R. H. Kern's diary, in Blanche Grant,
When Old Trails Were New, 141)
Kronig's phonetic spelling of the Spanish word piloncillo needs only to omit his
292 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
and valleys was beautiful beyond description. The expanse
of scenery fascinated me so that I stood looking for a long
time, although chilled through and through. As soon as
we were on the opposite side of the mountains we ran out
of the snow. There was hardly any remained except on
the northern slopes where the sun did not reach ; the climate
changed from freezing to a delightful spring. We made
camp and stayed over for days as there was an abundance
of grass for our animals.
Near this camp one of the Mexican traders pointed
out the ruins of an old Spanish Fort, which must have been
the same place General Pike was made prisoner by the
Spaniards in 1808.48 We left this camp, going to Green
Horn or Cuerno Verde, named after a Comanche Chief,
who was killed in a fight with the Spaniards at that place.49
Here the Spaniards had established a small settlement,
but the news of the discovery of gold in California reached
them and they all moved on, with the exception of Mr. Baca
and Mr. Montoya, who both had Indian wives. Our next
camp was San Carlos, where we found a couple of log
cabins and signs of cultivation, but they were also aban-
doned when the news of the gold strike in California
caused them to move on. Here we heard the crowing of
cocks early in the morning; we did our best to find them
but they were as wild as the wildest bird and our hunts
were unsuccessful. It was rather strange that these birds
could survive, having been left two years before, as that
was the last known of the people living here.50
The next day we camped close to Pueblo, a fort made
of adobe and built by Mr. G. Simpson, I believe.51 The
48. Pike's "fort" was on the Conejos, a small tributary of the Rio Grande, but
Kronig's party here is across the Sangre de Cristo and therefore is in the drainage
of the Arkansas River. Also, Lieutenant Pike was taken in 1807, not 1808.
49. "The settlement on the Greenhorn, a little below the present town of Rye,"
dates "at least as early as 1846." (L. R. Hafen, Colorado, 93), A. B. Thomas, For-
gotten Frontiers . . 1777-1787, tells of the Anza expedition against the Comanches in
which the famous chief was killed.
50. The trading trip here being described occurred in 1851, if San Carlos was
abandoned in 1849. But probably this was the Spanish settlement of Comanche Indians
(1787) on the Arkansas River near the mouth of the San Carlos (St. Charles), near
the present city of Pueblo. The Indians soon deserted the site and it was not re-
occupied until in the 1840's. (Hafen, op. cit., 66).
51. Mr. G. Simpson has not been identified.
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 293
building was standing years later in a very good state of
preservation.
We followed the Arkansas River and made our camp
in a very nice sheltered location on its banks ; late at night
we were aroused out of our sleep by the camp guards with
the word FIRE on their lips. The wind was blowing hard,
the grass was two or three feet high and fairly dry. A
perfect sea of fire was rolling toward us. In the face of
such a calamity, confusion robbed us for a few moments
of our sense of locomotion. An old Indian trader, who had
been chosen as Captain for the trip, ordered us to dip our
blankets in the river, while he set the grass around the
camp on fire with a fire-brand. We were protected by the
river on one side and with the aid of the wet blankets we
managed to put the fire out inside the circle where our
camp was located. My hunting dog became frightened by
the fire and ran away from camp and became surrounded
by two fires. His pitiful howls were too much for me, so
I enveloped myself in a large, well-soaked blanket and
made my way to him; guided by his howls I found him
and carried him back to camp under the protection of my
wet blanket.
We found that our losses were small, with the excep-
tion of our blankets, which had been whipped to shreds.
We learned afterwards that the fire was started by one of
our guards, who built a fire to warm himself and it got
beyond his control. I have fought fires many times since
and without a doubt this is the most exhausting work I
know. It will not permit the fighters a moment's hesitation
or rest.
The fire finally ran itself out; we were hardly in con-
dition to move on, but we did. Our first move was to make
a smoke signal which was answered by the Indians, giving
us a location where we could find them. Some of the mem-
bers of our party were familiar with the country so we
were able to make a direct line to their village. On our
way a heavy snow storm blew right into our faces but this
did not slow us up as we were near our goal. We were met
by a small party of Indians. They returned to the village
294 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
with us. After we had ridden along for a while, I was
asked by one of their members, in good English, where we
intended to camp that night. Looking up and seeing nothing
but dusky faces, I did not answer, thinking that in the roar
of the storm my imagination had played me a trick; when
I was asked the same question again and did not answer,
the Indian said, "I only asked a civil question and I think
I have a right to an answer." I told him, then explained
that I had not expected to hear English spoken by one of
them. He told me that after an Indian fight he had been
found by an Indian Agent named Fitzpatrick52 when he
was a baby; later he had been sent to Saint Louis, where
he spent a number of years in school, which explained his
ability to speak English. He preferred the free life of his
own people to that of civilization and so returned to them.
I engaged him to help me trade, although as I learned
afterwards, his reputation was far from being good; how-
ever, I had no reason to be dissatisfied with his services.
It was our intention to trade with the Arapahoes en-
tirely but when we reached the village, which was very
close to that of the Cheyennes, they, the Cheyennes, insisted
that we divide the packs equally between the Arapahoes
and themselves. I had christened my new helper "Friday."
By proper maneuvering and to comply with my wishes,
Friday arranged that my packs should go to the Arapahoes
camp. Friday suggested that the first thing was to establish
the price of each article with the Chiefs. The measure was
a pint cup of beans. So from then on we gave pint cups of
beans for robes, buck skins and other articles that they
wanted to trade.
The village was rich in robes and other articles of
trade but they were nearly out of food of any kind. The
condition caused their leader to favor us. On the second
evening after our arrival we had sold nearly all the pro-
visions we had, leaving only enough to get back to the first
settlement which was Green Horn or Cuerno Verde, where
52. Thomas Fitzpatrick, called "Broken Hand," fur trapper and mountainman
from about 1823, partner with Bridger, Sublette and others in the Rocky Mountain
Fur Company, and after the Mexican War U. S. Indian agent for various Plains
tribes.
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 295
we had left a supply with Mr. Baca to take us back to the
first settlement.
While I was trading with the Indians, one of their
young men stole a Mexican bridle bit. Friday at once told
me. I quit my trading and went after the young man. He
saw me coming and ran ; after a long chase I caught him,
knocked him to the ground and took my bridle bit away
from him. While we were tussling, a group of Indians
surrounded us and watched. They did not interfere with
the scrap in either word or action.
It was impossible for us to cook in this nearly starved
village. Our first impulse was to feed them all but we were
in a strange country and if we gave too much we would
starve ourselves. At nights we were afraid to start a fire
to cook a meal for the minute we did we were surrounded
by a mob of the hungry Indians and we could not stand it,
so gave up the idea of cooking any food. I had purchased
a supply of dried, wild cherries pounded in mint with bits
of buffalo meat. This I divided among my men and that
was all we ate while in this village.
Leblanc, one of my companion traders in the Indian
Village, was packing up to leave when he missed a saddle
which had been brought in by one of the Indians. It had
been stolen but before long one of the other Indians re-
turned it, having taken it away from the thief. He wanted
to reward this man and asked me to give him some meal
for being honest. I told him I had just enough to take me
to Green Horn, and he remarked, "Oh, I have plenty," lifting
up an elk skin sack which would hold at least 60 pounds.
On the strength of this, I gave the Indian the meal and
allowed him to shake the sack.
When we reached camp that evening, I ordered a large
kettle filled with water; put in some salt and tallow and
sent for the meal. We found the sack alright, but on the
inside there was nothing but tallow. We made soup out
of the stuff in the kettle; I tried some of the mixture and
it made me so sick that I could not eat anything for several
days. We were not able to kill any game as the wind was
blowing a hurricane. We had to live on wild onions and
296 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
turnips with tallow. The onions and turnips were growing
in abundance.
CHAPTER XI
After a time we finally reached Cuerno Verde, had a
good meal and rested through the night. We ate again and
after that many of the trappers and traders prepared to
leave. Mr. Baca and Mr. Montoya, who were the only resi-
dents there, invited a few of us to stay through the summer
and plant a crop, which was to include beans, corn and
wheat, and if we had a favorable season we would have
plenty. The crops would be of great trading value to the
Indians. The land had been previously levelled up and
irrigation ditches built, which could be put in repair with
very little labor. The houses and barns were in good repair.
So Leblanc and I decided to stay, and put in this crop jointly.
Leblanc, being the most practical and having had experience
in this class of farming, stayed while I went to Taos with the
packs to dispose of the robes and buck skins we obtained
from our Indian trading expedition. However, I left the
best of the robes at Leblanc's house, at Arroyo Hondo, as
we expected to do some trading with the Navajo Indians.
The robes were highly sought by them ; however, they manu-
factured a blanket that the prairie Indians wanted and we
intended to make the exchange or sell to the Pawnees or some
other Prairie Indian that wanted them.
I layed in a supply of provisions sufficient to last us until
fall, as well as purchasing a supply of shovels and spades.
I hired six men to take the packs and the animals to a point
in a road where I had six Peons waiting for me. These
Peons had been receiving only $1.50 to $2.00 a month and
had run away from their employers. I had made them an
offer of $8.00 a month and food, which salary would enable
them to pay out the bill they owed their masters and become
free men in about six months.
On my return trip to Cuerno Verde, we overtook a boy
about twelve years of age ; he was quite small and was carry-
ing a bag of meal and beans, which weighed about forty
pounds, on his back. Feeling sorry for him, I put the bag
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 297
on the back of one of my mules, and allowed him to ride
behind a pack on another mule. The boy had carried the
pack for forty miles and walked the entire distance. He had
been adopted by a sheep rancher, but when we reached the
ranch the little fellow wanted to go with me and begged so
earnestly that I allowed him to do so.
My partner had made good progress in making the nec-
essary preparations for a farm ; the dam was repaired, the
ditches cleaned out and some of the land was watered ready
for plowing. The plows were made with a large piece of
oak, similar to the kinds used in the old Egyptian days ; they
answered the purpose very well. Leblanc was needed at
home so it was necessary to put the crop in without his help.
I kept four plows running all the time and about the 20th
of May the corn, beans, wheat and some vegetables were in.
Montoya was a hunter and supplied me with venison at
the rate of one dollar for an antelope or deer. About this
time I sold him a mare for $30.00, to be paid for at the estab-
lished rate with the condition that I would pay a higher rate
for larger game in proportion to the amount of meat on the
animal. One day he brought in what he claimed to be the
carcass of an elk, for which I allowed him the rate of four
antelope in part payment for the mare. A short time later
Baca came around and told me in the presence of Montoya
that I had not received an elk but in reality it was a horse.
Of course, the game hunter was very indignant about this
remark and offered to produce the elk's hide within three
hours, and to make it strong enough, he offered to bet Baca
a horse that he could do it. Baca sneeringly said, "Why
didn't you bring the hide with the carcass," and Montoya
said that Baca knew just why he didn't bring the hide;
they were of no value at this time of the year, being full of
worms. Baca declined to take the bet and in the firm belief
of having procured genuine elk I let the matter drop as far
as I was concerned.
I had frequently heard old mountain hunters talk about
the taste of the marrow in the bones of large game and the
first thing I did was to order one of my men to cut the marrow
bone of the front quarter of the elk and roast it on the fire.
298 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL EEVIEW
I could hardly wait until it was done, but when I tried it I
was sorry that I had been so curious, as it tasted abominable.
The animal, being poor, had a very watery and not well-
flavored substance in its bones. My men all claimed that it
was a horse, a very lean one at that, but as Baca had refused
to take the bet, I insisted that it was elk meat we were
eating; in order to set a good example I joined my men in
eating the meat whenever meal time came around, until
th last of this carcass was consumed. Even to this day I
shudder when thinking of the days it took to finish the car-
cass of this supposed-to-be elk, or horse. One thing we will
never know, whether it was elk meat or the meat of a horse,
as they resemble each other very much and both meats are
quite stringy.
The season, which was so very favorable at the start,
changed ; the southwest wind blew continually and dried up
the grass, rivers and even the two springs in front of the
house. We went up the headwaters of the stream and did
considerable work in an effort to change the channel and
develop water for irrigation. We tried to throw all the small
tributaries into this stream so that we would still be able to
irrigate some of the land. The new supply we had developed
helped us for a few days, but the water became more scarce
every day and it became necessary that we haul water so
that we would have sufficient drinking water. Our corn
began to droop its head and the other garden vegetables
withered in the dry weather.
Near the river we discovered numerous rattlesnakes.
We killed them, but the more we killed seemed to bring them
out in double their number. We would go out hunting them
evenings and I joined my men in an effort to destroy the
pests. I had a favorite bull dog and he joined me one day
in the job of exterminatng the snakes. He would rush in,
grab them by the neck behind the head and break their necks
just after they would strike at him. However, one day he
was not so fortunate, for there were too many snakes at one
place. He killed the snake he was watching, but two others
nearby bit him several times. I took him home at once
and rubbed powder in his bleeding wounds and watched him
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 299
carefully for a while. He swelled up, but the following day
he was resting easy and in ten days he was out again at his
old task of killing snakes. He was bitten several times
after that but the effect was slight and after each time he
was bitten he would run to the creek and find a wet place to
lay in it for a while. He would burrow himself into the mud
and lay there for two or three hours, with no sign of distress.
After that I decided he knew how to take care of himself
and let him go where he wished.
Things began to look very discouraging ; I had the men
on hand and not knowing what to do with them on the ranch,
decided to send them up in the mountains to dry the meat
that the hunters brought in. Seeing that it was useless for
me to stay around, I decided to go hunting. During a con-
versation with Mr. Baca, we planned a hunting trip up the
Arkansas River. We left the farm, as per program outlined
early the following morning, with nothing but our guns and
a few pack animals. When I protested that it was folly to
go without cooking utensils and salt, he remarked that he
wanted to show me how to rough it. I felt rather vexed,
as I was sure I could take care of myself.
We struck out right across the prairie, crossing the San
Carlos, which at that time was nearly dry, with only a little
slimy water in the pools, and as it was yet early in the morn-
ing we did not try to find any water suitable to drink. The
day had been hot and toward night I was very thirsty, and
as you may know, nearly famished for a drink. Baca
killed an antelope and I drank some of the hot blood which
made me terribly sick and I had to lay down for a little
while. However, I was able to travel before long and we
reached the Arkansas River without further incident, but
being hot and dry, I drank too much water and again felt
sick, but by traveling all day with nothing to eat, I recovered
and by this time Baca had a supper ready which comprised
of nothing but roasted antelope. The meat was good and
that night I slept intermittently, but I was supposed to
rough it. We finally returned to Cuerno Verde after having
spent three weeks on nothing but meat. My mouth was sore
and fever blisters were breaking out on my face from having
300 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
so much meat without other green foods to mix with it. We
reached the farm just in time to see the first shower, which
drenched the fields, and we were at ease as to the results
of the crop. The showers continued almost daily, making
irrigation unnecessary. Our hunters had been very success-
ful, and we found a few buff alos in the vicinity ; after that
there was plenty of work for all.
The summer passed and the crops were harvested. The
corn and other crops we had were trading- materials and
before long we were on our way north toward Fort Lara-
mie,53 to trade with the Indians. We, that is myself and
my eight men, traveled along with our saddle horses and our
pack animals. At last we reached the Indians; we began
to trade and in a little while our grain and food stuff changed
into gold, buck skins, and buffalo hides.
I noticed that they had numerous animals, sheep and
cows with sore feet and I began to trade for them, remember-
ing the nice hilly country where two streams joined together,
down in New Mexico. I decided to establish a ranch. My
plan was to accumulate a herd of these animals and drive
them to the good locations I knew of and settle down. So I
began to buy them with what trading values I still possessed,
first buying what I could from the Indians and later from
the settlers, who were driving into the country. I was able
to buy a number of full grown cows for one dollar each and
sometimes have the calf thrown in.
CHAPTER XII
In the early part of August, 1853, I left Fort Laramie
with ninety-four head of cattle and two hundred foot-sore,
Moreno sheep. The animals were tired and their feet were
worn to the quick by the hard driving they had been given.
We made little progress traveling toward the south to a
prospective home I had in mind. On the fourth day we
ran into a tribe of Sioux Indians; their lodges must have
numbered at least four hundred.
There had been trouble between the Indians and the
53. Where Laramie, Wyo., now stands. Apparently this trip north started in
the late summer of 1851, yet a few lines below Kronig speaks of leaving Fort Laramie
in August, 1853.
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 301
soldiers at the Ferry near Fort Laramie; one Indian had
been killed and this caused me to anticipate trouble with
them. I at once went to the Chief and had a pow-wow.
After the usual greeting of the times, the Chief assured me
that they all had friendly intentions and that if a rupture
occurred it would be with the soldiers and not the traders.
I invited him to my camp to eat the evening meal, which
he accepted ; our fare was not so good but he seemed to enjoy
it and after we had eaten he volunteered to stay all night in
my camp, to keep away any of the depraved young Indians.
The next morning he bade us genuine goodby. However,
I was rather skeptical and after looking over our pack ani-
mals to see that all was ready to move, I made special count
of the stock and found that the Chief was as good as his
word, for all the stock was there.
We again started on our long and tedious journey ; kept
traveling as fast as we could, which was only about two miles
an hour until about nine o'clock, when we stopped for break-
fast. We had left the Indian camp, each feeling that the
greater the distance between us and the tribe, the less chance
there would be of them changing their minds. However, the
hot rays of the sun bore down upon us, so we allowed the
sheep and cattle to rest. I posted three men to guard while
the balance of us hunted a place to sleep. The sun was so hot
that I made a canopy with some sticks and a blanket ; after
that I rested very well. About three o'clock we were again
on the road. It was my thought that if we were out of the
way, the temptation for the Indians would be gone. It took
us an hour, and considerable trouble, to get all the tired
animals to their feet and moving. After that I outlined
our daily program ; we would start moving camp at three in
the morning, travel until nine, rest until three in the after-
noon and then move on until nine at night. This program
went on for days until we reached Lodgepole Creek, when my
patience was at an end, and so decided to break the monotony
by doing a little exploring. I left my trusted foreman in
charge with instructions to continue south with the herd.
One of the men, Charles Muston, and myself made our way
toward the south fork of the Platte River.
302 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
That night we traveled until we reached Clear Creek
and as there was no water, we made a dry camp. The next
day we reached Carlie Do Pondrre,54 which stream, owing
to the late rains on the mountains, was up to its banks, and
the water running swiftly. We decided to camp there until
evening, in hopes that the water would recede, but to our
disappointment it did not recede and a large collection of
driftwood caused the river to overflow. We were at a loss
to know just what to do. The wisest move would have been
to have camped there until the water lowered so we could
wade across, but we had only three days provisions with us.
My companion could not swim, so we tried to make a raft out
of the driftwood, but the logs were few and most of them
unsuitable; we were stumped so to speak. I was a good
swimmer and did not fear the water, but Charles was afraid.
After a while I decided to try and find a suitable footing for
our mounts, but landed in a sea of quigmire on the opposite
bank and had to fight for my life ; finally I escaped by grab-
bing a passing log which gave sufficient bearing so that I
could loosen my feet. I floated down stream and found a
good footing, and a far better ford than the original trail.
After some persuading, my companion agreed to cross
by holding onto the mane of his mule. He entered the water
and after grabbing the mule's mane he found that it was
short, having been reached recently; then he let his hand
slide over the animal's b ick until he could grasp his tail, and
we were on our way acr> iss. I had tied our stock of clothes,
foot and ammunition to the saddle horn securely so that it
would not get wet. When we reached deep water I grabbed
my horse's tail and we soon were floundering in the swift
current coming down the mountains. However, we reached
the opposite bank without mishap. This high bank and a
rich supply of wood caused us to camp there. My companion
hobbled the horses and brought up a supply of wood from
the near-by drifts and soon I had supper cooking. We
barely completed a scant meal when thousands and thou-
sands of mosquitos swarmed in on us. They were so thick
54. Perhaps the notes here were not legible but without question this place-name
should read "Cache la Poudre," which is to the north of present Denver.
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 303
that we could not stand them and I knew staying there was
impossible, so I suggested that we go to higher ground. It
was then that I found that my companion had left his gun
on the other side of the river. This was stunning news to
me, because we could not proceed without arms. It was up
to me to get the gun and I thought I made a martyr of myself
for offering to again cross the river and get his gun. After
getting the location where it was supposed to be, I swam
back, looked and looked but could not find it. I fell into the
river several times while prowling around trying to locate
the gun. After fighting the mosquitos which fairly swarmed
over my body, I finally located the rifle and again crossed the
river.
If a strong wind had been blowing we would have had
some relief from these pests as an occasional breeze would
drive them from us but as soon as the force was gone they
were back again. We struck for higher gound, keeping the
mosquitos away as best we could until our horses were under
way. We ran them through the dark but as soon as
we slowed down the swarms were around us again. The
running was dangerous as the country side was spotted with
prickly pear cactus. However, we breathed a sigh of relief
when the day began to break, as now we could see where we
were going. Soon the sun shown above the hill, and it was a
glorious sight. We had traveled some distance in the dark ;
it was morning when we reached the Platte River with its
muddy, dirty water that smelled like decaying animals, that
had been dead for a long time. It was a puzzling sight to
my companion for the river was to be crossed again and he
could not swim. Last night's experience unnerved him so
that he shuddered at the thought of having to hang onto the
mule's tail to get to the other side. He refused, point blank,
to make the crossing. I examined the river by wading along
the bank and found it much better than I had expected. The
channel was deeper; banks were not abrupt, they sloped
down gradually so that its edges could be waded ; however,
the current in the middle was running swiftly. In order to
inspire my companion, who was watching from the shore, in
place of swimming when I reached the deep part I treaded
304 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
water, holding my hands up in the air. I went back to the
bank, he had another excuse, his mule's tail was too short for
him to hang on to, and not strong enough to carry him
across on his back. I offered my horse and told him he could
surely hang on to a horse's tail while crossing. After a
quarter of an hour of argument he consented to try and
cross; we arranged our packs on the horses, stripped and
hung onto the animals' tails when they reached deep water,
and soon made the crossing.
After rearranging our equipment, which was composed
of our guns, blankets, a few supplies, and then our clothing,
we dressed and started out ; to our surprise we found a fresh
trail of a large Indian party. We concluded that they must
be the Utes who a few days before killed some travelers.
We left the main traveled trail and made our camp in a
secluded spot until night; when we saddled up and began
traveling until we ran into a large herd of elk. This fright-
ened my horse ; it was so unexpected that I lost control of
him. The mule my companion was riding followed suit and
we went helter skelter over a large stretch of rough country
before I could gain control of my mount. The mule seemed
satisfied to stop when my horse was halted. Morning found
us on the banks of the Platte River, and on the trail of the
Indians. We concluded that it would be prudent to leave the
trail so as to avoid any contact with a roving band of bad
Indians. We traveled up a dry wash to a clump of cotton-
wood trees, at which point we expected to find water. In
order not to betray our presence, we kept to the bottom of
the gully, which meandered through a prairie in the most
provoking manner to the place where we intended to stop ; we
traveled at a snail's pace. The long night ride and the
sandy bottom of the wash tired us, but we were anxiously
looking for water. When we reached the cottonwood grove
we found only a mud hole, but it appeared that the water was
close to the surface, so we began to dig holes with our
butcher knives ; we only found sand and gravel with a cover-
ing of silty mud. We did not dare go back to the river for
fear of the mad Indians and toward night we became dis-
heartened ; the day had been hot and we were thirsty which
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 305
made the situation very discouraging. However, we kept
traveling on along the wash until midnight ; then threw cau-
tion to the winds and made a bee-line for the river, disre-
gading all vigilance as we were extremely thirsty. We
reached the Platte River just at sun up.
After refreshing ourselves and allowing our horses to
drink, we started out to scout around for Indian signs. The
brush along the river was plentiful and we could roam
around without being seen from the plains, which bordered
the river. After considerable search we found that the
Indians had quit the trail and followed up the river bank.
Our thirst being satisfied, the question of something to
eat confronted us. We allowed the horses and mule to get
sufficient rest and to eat a little when we started out to find
some game. We were fortunate in finding a herd of ante-
lope. My companion, who was a good shot, decided he
should do the killing. We dismounted and crawled up to the
side of an elevation between ourselves and them. He went
over to the side and I remounted my horse and held the mule
by the bridle reins. I was being watched by an antelope
while the sun beat down on us. After waiting for at least
a quarter of an hour, I saw him crawling closer and closer
until he was about 60 years away but still didn't fire. I could
stand it no longer so I purposely scared the animal that was
so intent on seeing what I was doing and not watching the
danger that was approaching it. My companion, of course,
missed the mark and we were still without food. He gave
the excuse that he was so nervous from crawling such a
long way that he missed. However, he never knew that just
as he was in the act of aiming the gun, I scared the animal
away.
We went back into the timber near the river and it was
here that my companion regained his reputation as a good
shot, for he killed a white tail deer at 200 yards, which
brought us food for the time being.
The next morning we started early and soon we were
on the Cherokees' trail ; however, we found no fresh signs of
any wagons or animals, which we were thankful for, as we
could now stick to the open road. However, at the Point
306 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
of Rocks55 between the Platte and Arkansas rivers we came
onto a number of wagons and a large herd of cattle. I
inquired of the owner if he had any lame cattle to sell. He
replied that he had a fine Durham bull for the sum of thir-
teen dollars. My companion and I went to see this bull and
I bought him, on the spot, on the strength of the horns being
very short, although my companion had told me that the
owner was an Arkansas Scout and that the bull was just a
common animal. However, I was anxious to get a good bull
to replace the one I had had at Fort Laramie, which was
killed in a fight with another bull. After the fight was over
the two fighting bulls lay dead on the sand near the river.
However, before concluding my trade with the owner of
the bull, I made the condition that he was to sell us sufficient
food or provisions to last five days. I also specified some
matches, which conditions he agreed to.
By this time the wagon had traveled quite a distance
and the owner and myself rode off to overtake it. I left my
companion to take care of the bull. When we overtook the
wagon we found that a sick man, who was just about breath-
ing his last, was in bed on top of the provisions. The driver
told me that the man was mighty sick and I did not have the
heart to make him move in his dying agonies ; I made up my
mind that we could get along without provisions. If worst
came to worst, we could kill and eat the bull. I came away
forgetting the matches, which was an oversight of mine that
had its consequences. Ever since we had left Lodge Pole
Creek, our mode of making fires was to take a piece of
quartz, moisten some pieces of cloth with powder, put them
on the ground and strike the quartz with the blade of a pen
knife, causing a spark to fall on the powder-soaked rag. It
was a very tedious way to light a fire. It seemed that to
use a butcher knife it would not break the quartz.
I returned to Charles, my companion, who was sitting
on a rock. Both his mule and the bull were gone ; they had
gotten into a thick grove of young trees, and could not be
seen. I went forth and found them grazing peacefully side
55. This "Point of Rocks" should not be confused with that where the White
massacre occurred. See note 21 supra.
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 307
by side. I returned them to the road, and we were on our way
once again but now we had a third animal to watch out for.
We outlined our program so that we could travel in the cool
of the evening. We had already passed Squaw Creek. In the
distance, two black clouds came up over the horizon and in
no time it began to rain, thunder and lightening. Not a
word was spoken. We went silently on, facing the rain. It
looked as if the blue flame from the lightening was playing
on the barrel of my rifle; however, we felt we were in the
hands of providence since we had escaped being killed.
Every deep spot was filled with water, every dry arroyo
was a torrent of water until at last we came to one that was
running so full that we felt it was too dangerous to cross. I
proposed that we let the bull shift for himself and that we do
something. We did and in no time we had our animals on
the run for the timber which could be seen a short distance
to the left about four or five miles from the road.
My companion said that it was the first sensible sugges-
tion I had made since I had bought that Arkansas bull.
When we reached the timber the first thing to do was to get
a fire started, but how could we do it was the next question.
I had thrown my flint away when I expected the matches,
and now, being forgetful, I was to suffer the consequences,
the punk, or rotten cloth, I had was gone as well. For a
while it looked like we were not going to have a fire, when
we advanced the idea of firing a charge into some rags and
fan it into a blaze with our hats. We fired the charge and the
blaze started, but it went out, so we tried again but had no
success. I tried to find a piece of quartz on the ground and
in so doing I stepped into some quicksand and had a terrible
time getting out; if I had not got down on my hands and
feet I think I would have been completely mired down ; how-
ever, I was out on high ground ready to resume the experi-
ment of trying to start a fire. I was now wet from head to
foot, as well as having fallen into a poison ivy vine. I sat
down on my roll of blankets in despair. I was so cold and
chilly, the cold had sunken to my bones. I have never been
so cold. I needed a fire to warm myself, and my companion
was just as cold. My next move was to fill a rag with pow-
308 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
der and place it at the base of a tree with some dry bark
around it. I fired my gun into it but only a small spark
appeared. The rest of the package was too wet to burn. I
thought a little powder would help it along, so I poured a
little in some cedar bark, while Charles, in the meantime,
was holding a blanket over my head to keep the powder dry,
and as my fingers were so numb I could not feel, I had my
fingers close to the powder horn. I thought that here it
might burn, when all at once the powder exploded sending us
both in opposite directions. We sat where we had fallen,
saying nothing for quite a while, and soon we moved over so
we could lean against a tree trunk, when Charles said, in
very sober words, "William, it is very curious thing to dis-
pose of a man's eyesight without anything to eat away in this
wilderness and at least five miles from the road." We sat
where we were and after long waiting, morning came. The
rain had stopped and the glorious sun came out in all its
glory and warmed our chilled bones.
We gathered up our blankets and wet buck-skin clothing
in a very crumpled manner. Our stiff limbs caused us to
groan when we moved. About this time Charles said, "Wil-
liam, I believe I can see. I kept a wet rag over my eyes all
night and now I can see a little." I could also see a litte but
my eyes smarted terribly and, not knowing how he was, I
did not tell him I could see, as he was under the impression
that my eyes were gone.
When we were able we went in search of our mounts
and the bull. We found our hobbled animals, soon and
nearby the bull grazing with them contentedly. He prob-
ably was lonesome and when we prepared to mount, he came
over to be near us. We started down the road, the bull in
advance and after traveling several miles we came upon an
immigrant train and here we were able to purchase suffi-
cient supplies. We were both badly powder-burnt about the
face and my hair was badly singed. Some of the men belong-
ing to the train removed several of the powder marks on our
faces, laughing as they did it. However, it was no laughing
matter as far as we were concerned, but we did not object
to them having their fun at our expense.
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 309
The next day we reached Fountain.56 The bull moved
down to the river and into the mire but we managed to get
him out and on dry land. We then rode to the mouth of the
Fountain, and we were received with hospitality by Mr.
Baca. Here we remained in order to get treatment for our
powder burns, and I to be treated for the poison ivy. We
stayed long enough for our hair to grow out to a respectable
length. I sent a man back for the bull, who found him graz-
ing near the spot we had left him. To cap the climax, I had
expected to have a fine, high-grade bull, but he turned out to
be nothing but a scrub, as Charles had originally said he
would be. When I was finally convinced that he was a scrub,
I lost no time in trading him off ; but my friends never did
get tired of teasing me about my blooded bull.
CHAPTER XIII
It was probably at this point that Mr. Kronig became
ill, as there were no more notes left by him. It may have
been that he lost his eye-sight first, then the use of his arms
and hands, or perhaps it was just that he became tired and
did not want to write any more. Possibly he just wanted to
sit and smoke during his last days and day-dream of the
pleasant incidents of life. It is here that we can place the
sentence, or remark, "I wonder . . . ."
During the summer that is last described in his stories,
he lived in the vicinity of where Pueblo now stands. Here
he went into business, but in a few short months the trouble
between the Indians and the Whites became more prominent
and on Christmas day, 1854, his store and other buildings
were destroyed. He tried again by moving to other loca-
tions in this part of the country, only to be met by misfor-
tune, until finally he moved down into New Mexico, in 1856.57
56. Hafen, op. cit., Ill, tells us: "On the east side of the mouth of Fountain
Creek (site of present Pueblo) the town of Fountain City was begun in November,
1858." Here Kronig speaks of "Fountain" as a place already settled in the summer
of 1853.
57. A biographical sketch, evidently based on data supplied by Kronig himself,
indicates that he continued trading profitably with the Cheyenne, Arapahoe, Comanche
and Sioux Indians to the end of 1854, but "on Christmas Day, 1854, occurred the
massacre at Pueblo where 18 white people were killed and one woman and two
children were taken prisoners." (see also Hafen, op. cit., 99) "Business was then
310 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
Here he purchased a piece of property of about seven hun-
dred acres, owned by a Mr. Barkley, on which was located
a Fort, known in those days as Barkley's Fort.58 He settled
down for the time being and married. In about two or three
years his wife died ; he later remarried to have some one to
take care of his children.59
During the year of 1868 conditions were prosperous and
Mr. Kronig again became a man of wealth. It was about
this time that gold was discovered in Moreno Valley in
northern New Mexico, he being indirectly responsible for its
discovery.60 With the aid of some of his friends, he at-
tempted to construct a forty-four mile ditch and flume, at
a cost of $30,000.00 and through this undertaking lost all
his money, being again forced to start all over.
In 1872 he erected a smelter in Magdalena Mountains
and in this venture he was successful.
During the year of 1864 he built a show place right
across the Sapello River from the town of Watrous. The
house was large and in front of it he built a forty acre lake
and stocked it with fish.
entirely broken up and Mr. Kroenig went to La Costilla where he started a store and
distillery." This venture did not last long, for we next see him in 1856 ranching in
the Mora country.
58. James J. Webb, Journal of a Santa Fe Trader, 1844-47, mentions "Barclay &
Doyle, Indian traders" in the summer of 1845. Ralph P. Bieber who edited this
journal added (p. 133) a note: "Alexander Barclay and Joseph B. Doyle. In 1849
Barclay and Doyle built an adobe; trading post on the south bank of the Mora river
near the present village of Watrous, New Mexico. This post, which was still standing
in 1857, was known as Barclay's Fort. The firm of Barclay & Doyle was dissolved
in 1856." (Bieber cites a House Report; the Santa Fe Weekly Gazette, Feb. 9, 1856;
and Davis, El Gringo, 31.) And here Kronig buys the property.
59. Hafen (op. cit., 132) gives us the added information: "William Kroenig, who
had farmed on the Huerfano in 1859 and had marketed his produce in Denver, re-
ported in June, 1860, that over 600 acres were being farmed on the branches of the
Arkansas in that year as against 125 acres in 1859 . . ."
60. For some detailed information in this connection, see History of New Mexico
(Pacific States Publ. Co., 1907), II, 954-56. Of interest also is the fact that Kronig
was the author of "Report as to Mora County" (Las Vegas, 1881), a pamphlet of
five pages issued by the Territorial Bureau of Immigration. This body had five
"members at large" : Gov. Lew Wallace, Lehman Spiegelberg, Lu Bradford Prince and
T. F. Conway (all of Santa Fe), and William Kronig (of Watrous), besides com-
missioners for each of the twelve counties then existing. The pamphlet-cover shows
the legend: "This report was almost entirely prepared by Wm. Kronig, commissioner,
of Watrous, Mora County." His statement regarding evidences of prehistoric occupa-
tion of that region was quoted and endorsed by A. F. A. Bandelier in his Final Report
on Investigations in the Southwest (Cambridge, 1892), II, 132-133.
WILLIAM KRONIG, NEW MEXICO PIONEER 311
To Mr. Kronig was given the credit for constructing the
first flour mill in Colorado; he was also interested in the
first woolen mill built in the territory of New Mexico.
Mr. Kronig was a man of superior ability, possessing
intellectual powers of high degree, and from books and
experience gathered valuable knowledge to which he added
kindliness and sympathy ; his benevolent nature gave to his
influence a power that was far reaching. Through all of
his dealings he maintained a reputation of honor and was
highly esteemed by his fellow-men. Death closed his career
at Watrous in December 1896.
A TUCSON TRAGEDY
A True Tale of Terror
The Court of Judge Lynch
The Execution
Written for the Boston Commercial Bulletin
II
IDENTIFYING THE MURDERERS
With Evans to think was to act. It took him no time at
all to indicate by whispers, signs and winks that he wanted
half a dozen Americans to follow him. Exactly what he
said or how he said it, he himself could never explain, but
he managed to let his small band of select companions know
that three Mexican desperados, whom he had the best of
reasons for considering the murderers, were in the crowd,
unable to leave town until the pickets should be withdrawn
and playing the dodge of mingling boldly with the mourners
to divert all suspicion from themselves.
The next they knew was the sharp sound of click ! click !
"Hands up! and no jawbone. There! that will do. Now,
tie this one."
It was done. The Mexicans made no resistance. What
could it mean ? murmured the crowd. Those men have done
nothing. Why have they been arrested ?
"Ah! truly, sir, you speak well. We are poor people
from Oposura coming up to the fiesta of the glorious Saint
Agostin, and now about to travel to Magdalena for the
funcion of the ever blessed Saint Francis. "
"Take that fellow," said Evans, unmindful of this pious
explanation, "and follow me through the house."
Once in the yard, Evans* purpose was plain to be seen.
"Take off his moccasins and put his feet in those foot-
prints."
The prisoner resisted as best he could, but unavailingly.
His foot fitted perfectly in the track. The two were identi-
cal. A shiver ran through the crowd which unbidden had
pressed in behind.
"They have caught one of the murderers, sure," was the
general comment.
"Gentlemen, perhaps I can be of some service to you,"
said a bright looking young man, pushing forward to the
group which had assumed management of affairs. It was a
312
A TUCSON TRAGEDY 313
surgeon of the army, lately assigned for duty at the military
post near Tucson.
A professional call had brought him into town, just as
the story was passing from mouth to mouth that suspicion
had been directed to a Mexican whose newly-washed feet
just fitted the bloody tracks in the yard of the murdered
Munoz.
"Will you let me examine those feet?"
"Why, certainly, doctor, with pleasure."
The young surgeon knelt down and, before the prisoner
could divine his motive had seized one of his feet with one
hand and with the other ran a penknife under the nail of the
great toe, drawing out dark, red, coagulated blood.
"I'll put this under the microscope to be certain and let
you know what this is," he said, making a bow and disap-
pearing.
THE SURGEON'S DEVICE
Is it worth while to delay at this point? Rather is it not
better to hurry the story to a conclusion by saying that the
doctor's shrewd surmise was demonstrated into a scientific
fact and that blood, human blood, was proved to exist in the
clotted mass which careless ablutions had failed to remove?
The doom of one of the three was sealed. But how about
the other two ? The most rigid search had failed to bring to
light any of the stolen property, there was nothing but cir-
cumstantial evidence against them, and they protested their
innocence with an energy and plausibility that were not
altogether without effect upon the minds of those in charge
of them. The prisoners were, however, separated and cross-
examined at different points. Their answers, as might be
expected, showed many discrepancies; not serious enough,
perhaps, to justify, in the strictest interpretation of the law,
the scene which next followed, but sufficiently grave, in the
remote outlying settlements of the Far West, to justify his
Honor, — Judge Lynch, — in any measure, even death itself.
"Boys !" said the spokesman, "we're on the right trail.
One of these men has certainly been concerned in this most
brutal murder, and altho' I can't prove it, I believe that all
three have been, They can't tell the same story twice in
succession ; they're lying right along and I propose that we
hang them all three until they do tell the truth."
Evans was addressing the population of Tucson. It
seemed as if every soul in the town had found a way to the
old mpntepio, in front of which were massed hundreds of
men, impatient, excited, thirsting for revenge.
"You bet," was the emphatic endorsement, uttered by
hundreds of voices "that's what we'll do."
314 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
JUDGE LYNCH IN COURT
The prisoners glanced uneasily from face to face. They
saw around them representatives of nearly every race in
the world. Mexicans in scores ; Mexican Indians ; Apaches,
of whom a few then known as Tame Apaches, had lived in
Tucson for years ; a negro or two, and as many Chinamen,
for the Mongolian had scarcely as yet invaded the territory ;
while among the "Americans," were Germans, Irish, French,
Yankees from Cape Cod; long-limbed Missourians, phleg-
matic Pennsylvania Dutch and a goodly sprinkling of "Forty
Niners" from California ; men of godly lives and men over
whose past careers charity had kindly spread her mantle.
Scarcely an American present without a title. There
were colonels and majors in plenty; "doctors" too and
"jedges," with here and there a "professor" to keep them
company. The Mexicans were content with the simpler but
more elegant "Don," which their American neighbors never
omitted in addressing them.
There was something peculiar about this punctilious
politeness of Arizona, beneath whose sage-brush and sa-
guaras the Muses and Graces were not commonly reputed to
dwell.
You might be disposed to dispute "Jedge" Dawkins'
claim to forensic distinction, and were he back in Boston
you would, no doubt, in cold blood, call him Dawkins only,
if you called him anything at all; but in the exhilarating
climate of the Southwest when you had it intimated to you
that Dawkins was "quick on the trigger" and "a nasty man
in a row," you at once gave him the benefit of the doubt and
of the handle to his name.
Some of the Mexicans of the better class were excep-
tionally refined and good mannered. Politeness, in a word,
clothes the Mexican as with a garment. He may not always
mean what he says, yet he says what he doesn't mean in
such a graceful, Chesterfieldian way that you like him in
spite of yourself.
MEXICAN POLITENESS
No American has ever realized the niceties of good
breeding until he has seen a Mexican of the lower class
approach a "caballero" and ask for a light for his cigar-
ette. There is such perfect courtesy, such a sense of mutual
dependence and mutual confidence displayed, that, at the
least, you fancy that one must be a poor relation of the
other. Not in the slightest degree, except as they both trace
back to old Father Adam. They have never seen each other
before and may never see each other again.
A TUCSON TRAGEDY 315
To come back to the throng which massed about the
condemned, it now includes numbers of the best Mexicans in
the town, who were more anxious to rid the earth of these
wretches than even the Americans were, because they knew
more of the past history of the gang, to which it was believed
they had belonged in Sonora.
Thus stood the prisoners for one brief moment scanning
the features of those who were soon to be their executioners ;
in that brief moment, the quivering wretches had time
enough to comprehend that in the sea of diverse faces there
was one trait in common, one bond of union, — the absence
of all mercy.
"Don Leopoldo!" said Evans, turning to a plainly
garbed, rather swarthy faced, but very keen looking Mexi-
can, "we want you to say to these men that they have not
much longer to live. We know that they've murdered poor
Munoz and his family and ought to be hanged on sight;
for all that, we want to do the fair thing and will give
them a chance to tell the truth and all they want to say. May
be one of them had less to do with it than the rest."
PLEADING FOR MERCY
At this intimation, slight as it was, of clemency for
"State's evidence," one of the culprits, who may as well be
called Garcia — and while we are naming him, let us, as a
matter of poetic license, designate his accessories as Vasquez
and Ribera — began most piteously to plead for mercy.
"By all the saints in heaven," he swore, "I had nothing
to do with the murder. I was not the one who did it."
"It makes no difference which of you did it," interposed
the impatient captors, "we're going to hang you all just for
luck, and if you can't remember all about it by the time we
let you down, we'll stretch your necks for good."
One after another the murderers dangled in the air and
were kept there until nearly strangled. Then they were let
down and from their half -articulate, terror-stricken utter-
ances the full horror of their crime was gleaned.
Vasquez and Ribera had committed the murder, Garcia
keeping watch, lying down flat on the ground, on the oppo-
site side of the street, ready to sound a low whistle the
moment any one approached. But no providential footstep,
no belated gambler homeward reeling from the scene of his
successes or reverses at the fiesta, scared away the inhuman
butchers from their deed of blood. Munoz, Dona Luisa and
the little child were murdered almost in the manner sug-
gested to the quick perceptions of those who first entered
their house, and there remained to be cleared up only one
316 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
mystery of the place of concealment of the jewelry and other
trinkets of value which had been the incentive to the crime.
CONCEALING THE PLUNDER
"I will tell you," said Vasquez, coolly; "you know all
now. It's no use trying to conceal further. We buried our
plunder directly in front of the Governor's house. We
thought that that would be the last place any one would
think of examining. A short distance down the lane which
leads from the Governor's house to the bishop's house, on
the right hand side, is a mesquite tree ; under it we buried
the jewelry. Take me there, I will show you the spot."
There was a chorus of assent to this proposition. With
hands still bound, but escorted by so strong a guard that all
hope of escape was out of the question, Vasquez led the
way — "There! Dig in that spot." A half dozen spade-
fulls of soft earth brought to light a small bundle of gold
ear-rings, bracelets and watch chains, some of them well
marked with blood from the murderers' hands.
These men were to hang, and in a very few minutes.
Every hour of grace would be only so much additional tor-
ture; why not run them down into the Bottom and hang
them to the first cottonwoods? But here spoke out "Don
Samuel," an Amercian married to a Mexican lady, and
almost as much a Mexican as an American, so far as knowl-
edge of language and customs went, a clearheaded man, a
property holder and a prominent person in every sense.
"I want to say right here that we have caught these men in
the very act, I may say, of foul murder ; we have tried them
not by a jury of twelve, but by a jury of the whole town.
By that jury and by their own confession, we have found
them guilty. Why hang them in the Bottom? Why not hang
them in the Plaza itself?"
A murmur of approval.
"While we're about it," added a tall, quiet looking miner
from the Comstock, "why not make a clean job of it? Why
not hang Williss who was seen by half a dozen good, reputa-
ble witnesses to shoot that Mexican, Flores, in cold blood a
year ago? The county can't well afford to keep him in jail
forever and he's had a fair trial and been found guilty. This
trying a murderer half a dozen times over costs a heap of
money."
"Yes, they might just as well hang the whole batch at
once," so the great throng concluded with lightning celerity.
Who set in place the strong beams which formed the gallows ?
Quien sabe. Who bought the rope and made ready the
nooses? Quien sabe. Quien sabe was busy that day and
A TUCSON TRAGEDY 317
did much that over-zealous officials might afterwards have
liked to find out.
The cathedral bells, which hung on a horizontal beam in
front of the old church, clanged and clanged and clanged,
because small boys were deputed for this task and the small
boy is never so conscientious in obedience to orders as when
his work involves noise.
It was a solemn, — a dreadful scene, — that on the plaza
in front of the church, the gallows, the executioners, the
sullen determined assemblage ; the three Mexican murderers
were promptly in place, two of them bold and collected, the
third faint with fright, sustained in the arms of two stout
men.
"Make way! — and the crowd divides, to allow the
entrance of the party who had seized upon jail and jailor
and taken possession of the fourth murderer whom they
were dragging to his death — a white-faced, cowardly cur.
He had in his day been a "desperate character" and in that
role had shot and maimed many a poor wretch drunker than
himself or not so well armed. Half a dozen murders were
charged up on his head and one proved. Yet when his turn
came to die, no innocent child could plead so piteously for
mercy. "Gentlemen, only a few days, spare me! I'll be a
different man for the rest of my life. Don't kill a poor man
in cold blood—"
FOUR STRANGE SCARECROWS
"Was that what you told Flores ?" queried one of those
nearest him. "Didn't you say you shot to see ad d Mexi-
can wriggle? Well, you've got to take a dose of your own
medicine and that's all there is about it."
"Don't let me die like a dog — let me talk to some clergy-
man."
"By Jove, boys, he's right. Let some one of those
'muchachos' run over for Padre Antonio or Padre Francisco,
but tell him to hurry, as we have no time for fooling."
The speaker was a rough-mannered, brawny, handsome
fellow, from somewhere down in York State, the last man
in the world to be credited with any personal solicitude about
matters theological where himself alone was concerned.
He was too manly not to concede to others, however, the same
freedom of opinion he demanded for himself. The swift-
running boys delivered their message and returned, herald-
ing the priest, at whose approach all drew back a respectful
distance, to allow him whispered converse with the doomed.
Vasquez died impenitent — that is, he explained that his
whole career had been so bad there was no use trying to say
318 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
prayers in his last hour. Garcia was believed to be already
dead of fright. Ribera humbly confessed his sins, while
Williss, a Protestant, as was said, held the priest's hand in
a vice-like grip and listened during the brief time allowed
him to the good man's words.
'Twas early morning again. The first faint flush of
dawn once more aroused the crows up on the tops of the
pitahayas and this time the burden of their gossip was the
four strange scarecrows which hung from the gallows in
front of the church in the Plaza of old Tucson.
FRIAR PERSONNEL AND MISSION CHRONOLOGY
1598-1629
By FRANCE V. SCHOLES and LANSING B. BLOOM
IN THE PAST, students of the early mission history of New
Mexico have depended very largely on five major sources.
These are (1) the Relaciones of Fray Jeronimo de Zarate
Salmeron, (2) the 1630 Memorial of Fray Alonso de Bena-
vides, (3) the two Relaciones of Fray Estevan de Perea,
(4) the Teatro Mexicano of Fray Agustin de Vetancurt,
and (5) the Bezerro General of Fray Francisco Antonio de
la Rosa Figueroa.
The first, written about 1629 by a friar who had served
in New Mexico from 1621 to 1626, deals to a great extent
with geography and exploration and actually contains little
about missionary developments.1 Benavides' Memorial of
1630, of which the Ayer-Hodge-Lummis edition is well
known, describes conditions at the end of the third decade
of the seventeenth century.2 In 1634 Benavides presented a
revised version to Pope Urban VIII which contains some
additional data. A translation of this second edition, with
numerous appendices and elaborate notes, is now in press.3
Perea's two reports, published in 1632-1633, deal with events
of the year 1629.4
Vetancurt was a chronicler of the Franciscan province
of the Holy Evangel in New Spain, of which the New Mexico
missions formed a part. His work, originally published in
1697-1698,5 records a certain amount of material not avail-
1. Relaciones de todos las cosas que en el Nuevo-Mexico se ban visto y Babido
. . . desde el ano de 1538 hasta el de 1626, por el padre Geronimo de Zarate Salmeron.
Published in Documentos para la historia de Mexico, Tercera eerie (Mexico, 1856).
2. The Memorial of Fray Alonso de Benavides, 1630; tr. by Mrs. Edward E.
Ayer; annotated by Frederick Webb Hodge and Charles Fletcher Lummis (Chicago.
1916).
3. The manuscript of Benavides' Memorial of 1634 is in the archive of the
Propaganda Fide in Rome. This version, translated and edited by F. W. Hodge,
G. P. Hammond and A. Rey, and now in press, will comprise Vol. VI of the Coronado
Historical Series, edited by G. P. Hammond.
4. English translation by L. B. Bloom in New Mex. Hist. Rev., VIII (1933).
pp. 210-235.
5. Agustin de Vetancurt, Teatro Mexicano (4 pts., Mexico, 1697-98). Second
edition in 4 vols., Mexico, 1870-71, in Biblioteca historica de la Iberia, vols. 7-10.
319
320 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
able elsewhere, but it contains many inaccuracies and con-
sequently is not entirely trustworthy. Rosa Figueroa was
archivist of the province of the Holy Evangel in the eight-
eenth century, and his Bezerro General attempts to list the
friars who had been enrolled in the province, beginning with
the first Franciscans who came to New Spain in the 1520's.
It provides valuable data concerning the nationality or place
of birth of the friars, when and where they made their pro-
fession, and interesting details about the lives of outstand-
ing missionaries.6
But the material recorded in these sources does not give
adequate information for the early history of the New Mex-
ico missions and their founders. Consequently it is neces-
sary to glean many facts from the mass of manuscript
sources that have been made available during the past quar-
ter-century by the investigations of various scholars. Some
of these supplementary data have been presented in George
P. Hammond's Don Juan de Onate and the Founding of New
Mexico (Santa Fe, 1927) . The authors of the present paper
have recorded other facts in their respective publications.
But the story is still incomplete.
It is our purpose here to set forth the available infor-
mation concerning friar personnel and mission chronology
from 1598 to 1629. This was the most important period of
early New Mexico mission history. By the end of the
decade of the 1620's missions had been established in all
parts of the Pueblo area.
1. FRIAR PERSONNEL IN THE ONATE PERIOD
Ten Franciscan friars, eight priests and two lay brothers,
accompanied the Onate expedition to New Mexico in 1598.
The eight priests were Fray Alonso Martinez, Fray Juan
Claros, Fray Andres Corchado, Fray Alonso de Lugo, Fray
Juan de Rosas, Fray Cristobal de Salazar, Fray Francisco
de San Miguel, and Fray Francisco de Zamora. The lay
6. Bezerro General Menologico y Chronologico de todos los Religiosos que . . .
ha Avido en esta S.ta Prov.* del S.to Evang.0 desde su fundacion hasta el pres.te ano
de 1764 • . . Dispuesto y elaborado . . . por Fr. Fran.00 Antonio de la Rosa Figueroa
... MS in the Edward E. Ayer Collection, The Newberry Library. Chicago.
FRIAR PERSONNEL AND MISSION CHRONOLOGY 321
brothers were Fray Juan de San Buenaventura and Fray
Pedro de Vergara. Three donados (Mexican Indians who
were not professed friars) named Juan de Dios, Francisco,
and Martin, were also in the party. Father Martinez served
as commissary, or prelate, of the entire group.7
In the spring of 1599, when Onate sent dispatches to the
viceroy, Martinez left for New Spain in order to make a
report to his superior prelates and to seek additional friars
for the province. He was accompanied by Fray Pedro de
Vergara,8 who served as his companion and aid, and by
Fray Cristobal de Salazar. The latter, who was aged, was
probably returning for reasons of health, for he died during
the journey.9 Thus seven friars, six priests and one lay
brother, remained in the province, and Fray Francisco de
San Miguel appears to have been appointed to serve as com-
missary during the absence of Martinez.10
As a result of the favorable reports presented in Mexico
City, a new group of Franciscans were enlisted for service
in Mexico. There is evidence that Martinez planned to
return with them,11 but sometime before their departure he
withdrew and Fray Juan de Escalona was named commis-
sary in his place. The treasury accounts, which record
expenditures for food and supplies for this group, show that
nine friars were provided for.12 Deducting Martinez, the
other eight were : Fray Juan de Escalona, Fray Lope de Iz-
quierdo, Fray Luis Mairones, Fray Alonso de la Oliva, Fray
Gaston de Peralta, and Fray Francisco de Velasco, all of
them priests ; Fray Damian Escudero, lay brother and physi-
cian; and Fray Pedro de Vergara, the lay brother who had
7. Hammond, Don Juan de Onate, p. 92, note 346.
8. Hammond (ibid., pp. 124-25 and note 468) indicates some doubt whether Ver-
gara made the journey. But statements in the treasury accounts in Archivo General
de Indias (cited hereinafter as A. G. I.), Contaduria, leg. 697-98, prove beyond doubt
that Vergara accompanied Martinez.
9. Hammond, op. cit., p. 124.
10. In the summer of 1600 a probanza of the services of Vicente de Zaldivar was
drawn up at San Gabriel. Father San Miguel was one of the witnesses and he is
described as "comisario." A.G.I., Patronato, leg. 22.
11. A.G.I., Contaduria, legs. 697-98, 700.
12. A.G.I., Contaduria, leg. 700.
322 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
accompanied Martinez to Mexico in 1599 and now returned
to New Mexico.13
Fray Alonso de la Oliva left in advance of the others
and arrived in New Mexico in September, 1600. The others
arrived a day or two before Christmas of that year.14 This
new group of eight friars and the seven remaining in the
province in the spring of 1599, as noted above, give a total
of fifteen to be accounted for in the events of 1601 which
culminated in the withdrawal of most of the friars and a
large number of the colonists in the autumn of that year.
In March, 1601, a group of soldiers left New Mexico
with dispatches for the viceroy, and after their arrival in
Mexico City in the following summer they gave testimony
concerning conditions in the province at the time of their
departure. They testified that when they set out in March
there were only nine friars, six priests and three lay brothers,
left in New Mexico.15 This is exactly the number that can be
accounted for in the documents relating to the desertion in
the autumn of 1601 and to Onate's expedition to the eastern
plains in that year. They were : Fray Juan de Escalona, the
commissary, and five other priests, Fray Lope de Izquierdo,
Fray Gaston de Peralta, Fray Francisco de San Miguel, Fray
Francisco de Velasco, and Fray Francisco de Zamora ; and
three lay brothers, Fray Damian Escudero, Fray Juan de
San Buenaventura, and Fray Pedro de Vergara.16
What had happened to the six others? The testi-
mony of the soldiers given in Mexico City in the summer of
1601 indicates that Fray Alonso de Lugo, Fray Luis Mai-
rones, and Fray Alonso de la Oliva had returned to New
Spain, apparently in the spring of 1601 with the soldiers.17
With regard to Fray Juan Claros, Fray Andres Corchado,
and Fray Juan de Rosas, the fact that no mention of them is
made in any of the 1601 documents causes us to surmise that
13. Compiled from Hammond'a list (op. cit., p. 130) and the manuscript sources
for the period 1600-1601. See note 28 below.
14. Hammond, op. cit., p. 130.
15. Copia de una informacion . . . , 1601. A.G.I., Mexico, leg. 26.
16. Auto del gobernador de Nuevo Mexico y diligencias para que se levante el
campo, 1601, A.G.I., Mexico, leg. 26 ; Informacion y papeles que envio la gente que
alia quedo . . . 1601, in ibid.
17. Copia de una informacion . . . , 1601. A.G.I., Mexico, leg. 26.
FRIAK PERSONNEL AND MISSION CHRONOLOGY 323
they had died before March, 1601. If not, they also must
have returned to New Spain at that time or earlier.
At the time of the desertion in the autumn of 1601 Fray
Juan de Escalona, the commissary, remained at his post in
San Gabriel. Fray Francisco de Velasco and Fray Pedro de
Vergara were with Onate on the plains expedition and re-
turned with him to San Gabriel a short time later. The
six others — Escudero, Izquierdo, Peralta, San Buenaven-
tura, San Miguel, and Zamora — left the province with the
deserting colonists. Thus only three — Escalona, Velasco,
and Vergara — remained in New Mexico at the end of 160 1.18
According to letters of the viceroys and the treasury
accounts, four friars were sent out in 1603 and two more
in 1605.19 Fray Francisco de Escobar was leader of the
1603 group and in 1604 he assumed office as commissary.20
Another of the 1603 group was evidently Fray Juan de San
Buenaventura, lay brother, who went out with Onate in 1598
and returned to New Spain in 1601, for he accompanied
Escobar and Onate on the expedition to the South Sea in
1604-1605.21 Of the four others who went to New Mexico in
1603-1605, we can positively identify three who are men-
tioned in the documents of the Onate period. They are Fray
Lazaro Ximenez and Fray Isidro Ordonez, priests,22 and
Fray Alonso de San Juan, lay brother.23 The fourth was
18. The fact that no others remained is confirmed by a letter of Viceroy Mon-
terey to the king, Mexico, December 12, 1602, in which the statement is made that
only "two or three" friars remain in New Mexico. A.G.I., Mexico, leg. 26.
19. Monterey to the king, Mexico, May 28, 1603, A.G.I., Mexico, leg. 25 ; Montes-
claros to the king, Mexico, October 28, 1605, A.G.I., Mexico, leg. 27 ; also accounts
in A.G.I., Contaduria, legs. 704, 707, 842A. Torquemada (Monarckia Indiana, ed. 1723,
voL 1, p. 678) implies that all six went out in 1603. The Contaduria records indicate,
however, that two of them went two years later.
20. Escalona resigned after the desertion of 1601. Escobar was named commissary
to succeed him, but with the provision that Fray Francisco de Velasco should serve
for a year before Escobar took office. Torquemada, Monarchia Indiana (ed. 1723),
vol. 1, p. 678. This arrangement was evidently carried out, for we learn from another
source that Velasco held the title of "comisario apostolico" in the early part of 1604.
(See Scholes' article on Juan Martinez de Montoya in this issue of the Review.) But
prior to departure of Onate and Escobar to the South Sea in October, 1604, the latter
had assumed office as commissary.
21. Hammond, op. cit., p. 165.
22. A.G.I., Mexico, leg. 27.
23. San Juan is mentioned in a New Mexico document of 1606-1607 in Archive
General de la Nacion, Mexico (hereinafter cited as A.G.N.), Inquisicion, tomo 467,
ff. 342-353.
324 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
probably Fray Crist6bal de Quinones, for although we find
no reference to him in the contemporary records, Vetancurt
states that he died in New Mexico in 1609.24 There is also
evidence that a certain Fray Joseph Tavera was in New
Mexico toward the end of the Onate regime.25
We have also the names of four friars— Fray Pedro de
Carrascal, Fray Bernardo de Marta, Fray Roque de
Figueredo, and Fray Pedro de Salmeron — mentioned by cer-
tain writers as possibly being in New Mexico in the latter
part of the Onate period. No one of them, however, is
named in the contemporary sources.
Bancroft suggests that Carrascal and Salmeron may
have been members of the group that went out with Escobar
in 1603.26 Vetancurt tells us that Carrascal served for a time
in New Mexico, but gives no dates, and that he returned to
New Spain, where he died in 1622.27 We doubt, however,
that he was in New Mexico during the time of Onate, and it
seems likely that he came at a later date.28
With regard to Fray Pedro de Salmeron, Vetancurt
states that he accompanied Onate and Fray Francisco de
Velasco on an exploring expedition in 1604 and that he made
a report of this entrada to his prelates.29 From the nature
of Vetancurt's account it appears that what the author has
in mind is Onate's journey to the South Sea in 1604-1605,
although he evidently confuses it to some extent with the
plains expedition of 1601, in which Fray Francisco de
Velasco did take part. There is no evidence in the contem-
porary records that a Fray Pedro de Salmeron participated
in the 1604 entrada, and we suspect that the Salmeron report,
to which Vetancurt refers, is actually the narrative of the
24. Vetancurt, Teatro Mexicano, ed. 1870-71, vol. 4, p. 137.
25. Lo ultimamente proveido . . . , Mexico, September 28, 1609. A.G.I., Mexico,
leg. 27. ^
26. H. H. Bancroft, History of Arizona and New Mexico (San Francisco, 1889),
p. 154, note 14.
27. Vetancurt, op. cit., vol. 4 p. 293.
28. It is unlikely that Carrascal was in the group of friars who arrived with Esca-
lona in 1600, since Rosa Figueroa (Bezerro General, p. 124) shows that he was not
incorporated in the Province of the Holy Gospel until that year.
29. Vetancurt, op. cit., vol. 3, pp. 374-75.
FRIAR PERSONNEL AND MISSION CHRONOLOGY 325
South Sea journey which Fray Jeronimo de Zarate Salme-
ron incorporated in his Relaciones of 1629.
In a note to the Ayer edition of Benavides' Memorial,
Hodge states that Fray Bernardo de Marta came to New
Mexico in 1605 and cites Vetancurt.30 According- to the
Vetancurt account, Marta and his brother Juan sailed from
Spain in 1605, and the following year, when they were about
to set out for the Philippines, Fray Bernardo was ordered
to go to New Mexico.31 Rosa Figueroa relates that Marta
came to Mexico with his brother in 1605 and was enrolled in
the province of the Holy Evangel ; he also states that Fray
Bernardo wished to go to the Philippines with his brother,
but was prevented from doing so by his prelate, who sent him
to the convent of Puebla, "doubtless as vicario de coro or
organist, because he was an excellent musician." Later he
asked to go to New Mexico, where he died in 1632.32 (Vetan-
curt gives the date of his death as 1635.) It is evident from
the foregoing that Marta did not go to New Mexico in 1605,
and if he served for a time at Puebla, as Rosa Figueroa indi-
cates, then it seems likely that he was not in the province dur-
ing the time of Onate. The first reference to him in the
early manuscript sources is for the year 1613,33 and he was
probably a member of the group of friars who came with
Fray Alonso de Peinado in 1609-1610.
According to the bibliographer, Beristain y Souza, Fray
Roque de Figueredo "accompanied the captain general, D.
Juan de Onate, in the year 1604 on the expedition to those
provinces." On this point Hodge writes: "Bandelier (Doc.
Hist. Zuni Tribe, 93) states that Figueredo did not accom-
pany Onate, and Bancroft does not include him in his list
of Ofiate's associates in 1598, but this is no indication that
Fray Roque did not join Onate later."34 We find no evidence,
however, in the contemporary documents, that Figueredo
was ever in New Mexico prior to 1629, when he came with
30. Memorial (Ayer ed.), p. 198.
31. Vetancurt, op. cit., vol. 4, p. 328.
32. Bezerro General, p. 126.
33. Relacion Verdadera q. el pe predicador fr. Fran.co Perez Guerta . . . higo al
Rmo, Commiss. Gen.1 . . . , [1617]. A.G.N., Inquisici6n, tomo 316, ff. 149-74.
34. Benavides, Memorial (Ayer ed.), p. 197.
326 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
the band of thirty friars who were brought by Fray Estevan
de Perea in that year.
Thus it would appear that from 1601 to the end of the
Onate regime there were only ten friars in New Mexico at
one time or another. These were Fray Juan de Escalona,
Fray Francisco de Velasco, Fray Pedro de Vergara, Fray
Francisco de Escobar, Fray Juan de San Buenaventura,
Fray Lazaro Ximenez, Fray Isidro Ordonez, Fray Alonso
de San Juan, Fray Cristobal de Quinones, and Fray Joseph
Tavera.
According to Vetancurt, Escalona died in New Mexico
in 1607 and Quinones in 1609.35 Ximenez took dispatches to
the viceroy in the autumn of 1607 and then returned to New
Mexico in the following year. In the autumn of 1608 he
again went to New Spain, together with Fray Isidro Ordo-
nez, taking new reports which prompted Viceroy Velasco to
appoint Pedro de Peralta as governor of the province and to
send out a new group of friars with Fray Alonso de Peinado
as commissary.36 Peralta and Peinado arrived in New Mex-
ico early in 1610. Fray Francisco de Velasco evidently left
New Mexico in 1607 with Ximenez, for a letter of the audien-
cia dated June 23, 1608, reveals that he was then in Mexico
City and about to leave for Spain.37 Although he later re-
turned to Mexico and became provincial of the Order in
1629, he never went back to New Mexico. Fray Alonso de
San Juan was in the province in 1607,38 but he must have
gone to New Spain that year or the next, for we have evi-
dence that he was a member of the Peinado group that went
out to New Mexico in 1603.39 Tavera is recorded as bringing
dispatches from Onate in the summer of 1609.40 It appears,
therefore, that not more than three friars were left in New
Mexico at the end of the Onate period, viz., Fray Francisco
35. Vetancurt, op. cit., vol. 4, pp. 137, 207-09.
36. A.G.I., Mexico, leg. 27 ; Hammond, op. cit, pp. 178-79.
37. Audiencia to the king, Mexico, June 23, 1608. A.G.I., Mexico, leg. 72.
38. Cf. note 23, supra.
39. In a dispatch to the Holy Office, dated September 18, 1622, Fray Estevan de
Perea states that Fray Alonso de San Juan "came with me" to New Mexico. A.G.N.,
Inquisicion, tomo 486. Since we know that Perea was a member of the Peinado group,
it is evident that San Juan also journeyed to New Mexico at the same time.
40. Lo ultimamente proveido . . . , September 28, 1609. A.G.I., Mexico, leg. 27.
FRIAR PERSONNEL AND MISSION CHRONOLOGY 327
de Escobar, the commissary, and two lay brothers, Fray
Juan de San Buenaventura and Fray Pedro de Vergara. In-
deed, there may have been only two, for Torquemada seems
to imply that Escobar died while holding office as commis-
sary.41 He was still alive in 1608,42 but his death may have
occurred sometime during the following year.
2. MISSIONARY PROGRESS IN THE O&ATE PERIOD
In the summer of 1598 Ofiate established provincial
headquarters at the pueblo of San Juan. Construction of a
church was started on August 23 and the dedication services
were held on September 8. The first mission assignments
were made by Father Martinez on September 9, as follows :
Taos and Picuris, Fray Francisco de Zamora ; Tewa pueblos,
Fray Cristobal de Salazar, aided by the lay brothers, San
Buenaventura and Vergara ; Tano area and the Keres pueblos
on the Rio Grande, Fray Juan de Rosas ; Pecos and the Tiwa
and Tompiro pueblos of the Salinas area, Fray Francisco de
San Miguel ; Tiwa pueblos of the middle Rio Grande and the
Piro area, Fray Juan Claros ; Jemez district, Fray Alonso de
Lugo; Sia, Acoma, and the Zufii and Hopi areas, Fray An-
dres Corchado.43 Unfortunately the contemporary sources
record relatively little information concerning missionary
activity during the next three years. Certain facts, however,
can be gleaned from the printed documents for 1598-1599
and from the manuscript sources for the year 1601.44
The base from which missionary work was carried on
was at first the pueblo of San Juan, and later the pueblo of
San Gabriel to which Onate transferred his headquarters
sometime in 1599 or 1600. The first baptisms were per-
formed at San Juan soon after the arrival of the friars in
1598, and throughout the Ofiate period the Tewa pueblos,
41. Torquemada, op. cit, vol. 3, p. 598
42. We are told that Escobar approved the action of the cabildo of San Gabriel
in electing Cristobal de Onate as governor in 1608. Velasco to the king, February 13,
1609, A.G.I., Mexico, leg. 27.
43. Hammond, op. cit., pp. 103-104, and sources cited.
44. "Ytinerario," in Coleccion de documentos ineditos . . . , vol. 16, pp. 228-276 ;
H. E. Bolton, Spanish exploration in the Southwest, 1542-1706 (New York, 1916), pp.
212-267 ; and MS sources cited in notes 15 and 16, supra. Cf. also Hammond, op. cit ,
pp. 148-49.
328 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
being nearest the provincial capital, undoubtedly received
the greatest attention. At the time of the desertion in 1601
there were convents (friar-residences) and churches in San
Gabriel and San Ildefonso. The priests in charge were
Fray Lope de Izquierdo and Fray Francisco de San Miguel
respectively.
Father Zamora visited the Taos-Picuris area in the
autumn of 1598, but probably remained there a relatively
short time. There is evidence, however, that one of the
donados was at Picuris during the period prior to the deser-
tion in 1601.
Father San Miguel, accompanied by the donado Juan
de Dios, went to Pecos in 1598. After a short stay San Miguel
apparently returned to provincial headquarters, leaving
behind the donado who remained for a while longer. We
have no evidence that San Miguel ever visited the pueblos of
the Tiwas and Tompiros in the Salinas district which also
comprised part of his mission assignment. After the depar-
ture of Martinez in 1599, he served as commissary, with
headquarters at San Juan and later at San Gabriel. As
noted above, he was guardian of the convent in San Ildefonso
in 1601, probably having been assigned to that pueblo after
the arrival of the new commissary, Fray Juan de Escalona,
in December, 1600.
The documents of 1601 record that Father Lugo and
one of the donados labored for a time among the Jemez In-
dians, and we also have reference to a church where the
Indians came for instruction. Lugo returned to Mexico in
March, 1601. The donado may have remained with the
Jemez for a longer period, but the year 1601 probably marks
the end of effective work in that area for many years.45
Fathers Rosas, Glares, and Corchado may have visited
parts of their respective, mission fields in the autumn of 1598,
but we have no record of their activities thereafter. This
lack of information is an argument in favor of the surmise,
stated above, that they died in New Mexico prior to March,
1601.
45. See Scholes, "Notes on the Jemez missions in the seventeenth century," El
Palacio, XLJV (1938), 62-63.
FRIAR PERSONNEL AND MISSION CHRONOLOGY 329
We learn that two of the friars who came in 1600, Fray
Alonso de la Oliva and the lay brother, Fray Damian Escu-
dero, labored at Santo Domingo, apparently with the aid of
one of the donados. After the departure of Oliva in the
spring of 1601, Escudero may have stayed on at Santo
Domingo until the following autumn, when he left the prov-
ince with the other friars who withdrew at that time.
Information is also very inadequate for the period from
1601 to 1610. Such evidence as is available indicates that
missionary activity was concentrated in the Tewa and Rio
Grande Keres districts. A convent was maintained at San
Gabriel, from which the nearby pueblos of San Juan and
Santa Clara were undoubtedly administered. From time to
time the friars probably visited the other Tewa settlements,
but we have no evidence that friars maintained continuous
residence in any of them. After he relinquished office as
commissary, Escalona devoted himself to the conversion of
the Rio Grande Keres. It is recorded that he was serving
in Santo Domingo in 1604,46 and he apparently remained
there until his death in 1607. Vetancurt attributes the
founding of a convent, church, and infirmary at San Felipe
to Fray Cristobal de Quinones.47 But there can be little
doubt that the San Felipe foundations were established at a
later date by Fray Cristobal de Quiros, for whose services
Vetancurt mistakenly gives the credit to Quinones. It is
possible, however, that Quinones worked among the Keres
prior to his death in 1609.
If the estimate of seven thousand conversions reported
to the viceroy in 160848 is correct, or even partially so, it may
be inferred that missionary activity had been extended to
other districts besides those of the Tewa and Rio Grande
Keres. The most likely areas in which the work would have
been carried on are the Tano district, the pueblos of Sia and
Santa Ana, and possibly the Tiwa pueblos in the region of
modern Bernalillo. We have no positive evidence, however, to
46. A.G.N., Provincias Interims, tomo 34, exp. 1.
47. Vetancurt, op. cit., vol. 4, p. 137 .
48. Hammond, op. cit., p. 176. Torquemada, op. cit., vol. 3, p. 478, has "more
than 8,000."
330 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
substantiate this inference. With only two or three friars
left in New Mexico at the end of 1609, it may be assumed that
missionary activity was at a minimum when Onate's govern-
ment came to a close.
3. FRIAR PERSONNEL, 1610-1616
As we have noted in section 1, there were apparently
only two or three friars left in New Mexico at the end of
1609. As the result of reports brought to Mexico City
toward the end of 1608 by Fray Lazaro Ximenez and Fray
Isidro Ordonez, the viceroy decided to provide additional
support for the missions. Supplies and transportation were
provided for nine friars49 who left Mexico City in the spring
of 1609 and arrived in New Mexico early in the following
year.50 The leader of this group was Fray Alonso de
Peinado, who served as commissary, or local prelate, from
1610 to 1612. In 1611 Fray Isidro Ordonez, who had re-
turned with Peinado, went back to New Spain to obtain sup-
plies and additional recruits for the missions. A group of
eight new friars was enlisted and accompanied Ordonez to
New Mexico, arriving in August, 1612.51 On his return
Ordonez assumed office as commissary and served as head
of the missions until the end of 1616. Counting the friars
who remained in New Mexico at the end of the Onate period,
the nine who came from Mexico in 1609, and the eight
brought by Ordonez in 1612, we have a maximum total of
twenty to account for between 1610 and the end of 1616,
when the next group arrived.
On the basis of various sources,52 we are able to compile
the list of twenty friars, as follows :
1. Fray Francisco de Escobar, former commissary. If
49. The accounts for the supplies and transportation are in A.G.I., Contaduria,
legs. 711, 712, 850.
50. Fray Joseph Tavera, who brought dispatches from Onate in 1609, was Bent
by Velasco as messenger to deliver supplementary instructions to Governor Peralta,
then en route to New Mexico. A.G.I., Contaduria, leg. 712. There is no evidence,
however, that Tavera actually went on to New Mexico at this time.
51. Accounts for supplies furnished to this group are in A.G.I., Contaduria, legs.
714, 715, 850.
52. The most important source is the Relacion Verdadera of Fray Francisco
Ptrez Guerta. Cf. note 33, supra.
FRIAR PERSONNEL AND MISSION CHRONOLOGY 331
he was still alive when Peinado arrived in 1610, he must have
died within the next year or two, for he is not mentioned in
the record of events of 1612 et seq.
2. Fray Juan de San Buenaventura, lay brother.
3. Fray Pedro de Vergara, lay brother. He went to
New Spain sometime after 1610 and returned to New Mex-
ico in 1613 or 1614.53
The Peinado group of 1609
4. Fray Alonso de Peinado. Commissary, 1610-1612.
5. Fray Lazaro Ximenez. He is not mentioned in the
record of events subsequent to 1612, so we assume that he
had gone back to New Spain or had died prior to that time.
6. Fray Isidro Ordonez. Commissary, 1612-1616.
7. Fray Andres Baptista.
8. Fray Agustin de Burgos.
9. Fray Bernardo de Marta.
10. Fray Estevan de Perea.
11. Fray Cristobal de Quiros.
12. Fray Alonso de San Juan, lay brother. As noted in
section 1, he had previously been in New Mexico. He went
back to New Spain again, probably in 1614, but returned to
New Mexico with the new group of friars who arrived at the
end of 1616.
Friars who came with Ordonez in 1612
13. Fray Cristobal de Asumpcion, lay brother. He
probably returned to New Spain in 1613, and is not men-
tioned again in New Mexico.54
14. Fray Pedro de Haro de la Cueva.
15. Fray Jeronimo de Pedraza, lay brother.
16. Fray Francisco Perez Guerta.
17. Fray Andres Perguer.
18. Fray Juan de Salas.
19. Fray Andres Suarez (or Juarez).
20. Fray Luis de Tirado.
53. In A.G.L, Contaduria, leg. 717, we find record of a payment of 50 pesos,
executed September 27, 1613, to assist Vergara to return to New Mexico.
54. Ordofiez sent a friar with dispatches to Mexico in 1613. By a process of
elimination, we find that Asumpcion was probably the person selected to serve as
messenger. He is not mentioned again in the contemporary sources.
332 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
4. MISSIONARY PROGRESS, 1610-1616
As a result of the increased number of friars in New
Mexico during the years 1610-1616, there was a marked ex-
pansion of the missionary program, although progress was
retarded to some extent by a prolonged controversy between
Fray Isidro Ordonez, who took office as local prelate in
August, 1612, and the provincial governors. The chief
source of information for this period is an account (Relation
Verdadera) written by Fray Francisco Perez Guerta, one
of the friars who came with Ordonez in 1612.55 A few
details also are found in Benavides' Memorial of 1634 and
in Vetancurt.
After the founding of Santa Fe in 1610, the convent
that had been maintained at San Gabriel during most of the
Onate period was transferred to the new provincial capital.
We have no information about the actual founder of the
Santa Fe convent and church, nor do we know the names of
the friars who served in the villa from 1610 to 1612. When
Ordonez arrived in 1612, he assigned Fray Luis de Tirado,
one of the friars who came in that year, as guardian of the
Santa Fe convent, and this friar served as parish priest in
the villa until the end of 1616.56
Although missionary activity was carried on at San
Ildefonso from time to time during the Onate period, the
founder of the permanent mission was Fray Andres Bap-
tista, who came to New Mexico with Peinado in 1610. He
served as guardian of the convent of San Ildefonso until
1632.57 There was also a convent at Nambe as early as May,
55. Cf. note 33, supra.
56. Other friars who served at Santa Fe prior to the Pueblo Revolt were Fray
Bernardo de Aguirre (1617 and 1622-23), Fray Ascensio de Zarate (1622), Fray
Pedro de Hortega (1626-29), Fray Tomas de San Diego (1629-32), Fray Jeronimo de
Segovia (1634-35, Fray Antonio de Ibargaray (1635), Fray Domingo del Espiritu
Santo (1636-37) and 1641), Fray Juan de Vidania (1637-41), Fray Antonio de
Aranda (1639), Fray Antonio Perez (1641), Fray Juan Juarez (1643), Fray Nicolas
Hidalgo (1643), Fray Miguel Sacristan (1659 et ante), Fray Diego Rodriguez (1659
or 1660), Fray Nicolas de Freitas (1661), Fray Miguel de Guevara (1662), Fray
Nicolas de Enriquez (1663-64), Fray Francisco Gomez de la Cadena (1665-69, 1679-80),
and Fray Juan del Hierro (1672). (In this list and those which follow, we have not
included lay brothers.)
57. Other friars who served at San Ildefonso prior to the Pueblo Revolt were
Fray Diego Franco (1640), Fray Miguel de Guevara (1661), Fray Felipe Rodriguez
(1667). Fray Andres Duran (1672), Fray Luis de Morales (1680).
FRIAR PERSONNEL AND MISSION CHRONOLOGY 333
1613. The founder of this mission was Fray Pedro Haro de
la Cueva, a member of the group brought by Ordonez in 1612.
The same friar is recorded as being at Nambe in 1628, and
he probably remained there for another five or six years.
Fray Andres Suarez, who came to New Mexico in 1610, was
guardian of Nambe in 1635 and continued to serve the mis-
sion until at least 1647.58 There is evidence that there was
a church in San Juan prior to 1616, possibly the structure
erected by Onate and his associates in 1598. This pueblo and
the other Tewa settlements were evidently administered
from San Ildef onso and Nambe.
The first permanent mission among the Tanos was
established at Galisteo sometime during the years 1610-1612
by one of the friars who came with Peinado, but his name
is not known. In August, 1612, after the arrival of Ordonez,
Peinado was named guardian of Galisteo, but soon there-
after he was removed and sent to San Ildefonso to assist
Baptista. Fray Bernardo de Marta was guardian of Galisteo
in 1615, and Fray Francisco Perez Guerta was in charge of
the mission for a time in the early part of 1616. A second
Tano mission was founded at San Lazaro as early as 1613,
for we learn that Fray Andres Perguer was guardian of the
convent in June of that year. Fray Agustin de Burgos was
guardian there in 1614. We shall see, however, that San
Lazaro convent was not a permanent foundation.
The Santo Domingo mission, established in the Onate
period, became the ecclesiastical capital when the headquar-
ters of provincial government were transferred from San
Gabriel to Santa Fe. Peinado resided in Santo Domingo
when he was not out on trips of inspection in other areas,
and it was there that Ordonez held a chapter meeting of
friars on his arrival in 1612. The name of the friar who
served there as guardian prior to 1612 is not recorded. Fray
Bernardo de Marta was in charge of the mission in 1613-
58. Other friars who served at Nambe prior to the Pueblo Revolt were Fray
Antonio de Ibargaray (1662), Fray Felipe Rodriguez (1664), Fray Juan de Zamorano,
(1672), Fray Tomas de Torres (1680).
334 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
1614.59 Cochiti is mentioned as a visita in 1614 and San
Felipe in 1615.
The convent of Sia, first mentioned in July 1613, was
probably founded by Fray Cristobal de Quiros, who came
with Peinado in 1610. He apparently served at Sia until
1617 when he was transferred to Santo Domingo.60 Santa
Ana is recorded as a visita of Sia as early as 1614.
Fray Estevan de Perea, a member of the Peinado group,
initiated the missionary program among the Rio Grande
Tiwa, founding a mission at Sandia soon after his arrival in
1610. He continued his labors there until he went to New
Spain in the autumn of 1626. On his return to New Mexico
in 1629 he served a brief term (his second) as custodian, and
resided again at Sandia from 1630 to 1633, when he took
charge of the convent at Cuarac. Vetancurt tells us, how-
ever, that he died and was buried at Sandia.61
A second Rio Grande Tiwa mission was established at
Isleta by Fray Juan de Salas, who came to New Mexico in
1612. Salas is mentioned as guardian of Isleta at the time
of Governor Peralta's arrest by Ordonez in August, 1613,
but the mission had probably been founded during the latter
part of 1612 or early in 1613. Salas remained at Isleta as
guardian until he became custodian in 1630, and apparently
he continued to reside there during his term of office as pre-
late (1630-1632) ,62
69. Other friars who served at Santo Domingo prior to the Pueblo Revolt were
Fray Juan de Escalona (1604-07), Fray Cristobal de Quiros (1617), Fray Andres
Suarez (1621), Fray Martin de Arvide (1625), Fray Francisco de Avila (1640-41),
Fray Joseph de Paredes (1656), Fray Juan de Plasencia (1661-62), Fray Francisco de
Acevedo (1663-64), Fray Tomas de Torres (1667), Fray Gabriel de Torija (1667-68),
Fray Nicolas de Freitas (1669), Fray Juan Bernal, Fray Juan del Val (1672), Fray
Juan Talaban, Fray Francisco Antonio de Lorenzana, and Fray Jose de Montes de
Oca (1680).
60. Other friars who served at Sia prior to the Pueblo Revolt were Fray Agustin
de Burgos (1622), Fray Francisco Alvarez (1640-41), Fray Tomas de Alvarado (1662),
Fray Nicolas de Enrfquez (1665), Fray Pedro de Villegas (1666), Fray Lucas Mal-
donado (1670-71), Fray Felipe Pacheco (1672), Fray Nicolas Hurtado (1680).
61. Other friars who served at Sandia prior to the Pueblo Revolt were Fray
Francisco Fonte (1635), Fray Nicolas Hidalgo (1640-41), Fray Crist6bal de Velasco
(1648), Fray Fernando de Velasco (1659), Fray Salvador de Guerra (1660), Fray
Felipe Rodriguez (1660-61), Fray Francisco de Munoz (1662, 1663, 1665, 1667, 1669,
1672), Fray Nicolas Echavarria (1668), Fray Juan de Jesus (1672), Fray Tomas de
Tobalina (1680).
62. Other friars who served at Isleta prior to the Pueblo Revolt were Fray Diego
L6pez (before 1629), Fray Jeronimo de la LLana (1634), Fray Francisco de la
FRIAR PERSONNEL AND MISSION CHRONOLOGY 335
As noted above, Fray Alonso de Peinado was assigned
to Galisteo in August, 1612, but within a short time was sent
to San Ildefonso. Because of poor health, he spent some
time in Santa Fe in 1613, and during the controversy be-
tween Ordonez and Governor Peralta he manifested lack of
sympathy for the commissary's actions. The relations
between Ordonez and his predecessor became so strained
that Peinado decided to "banish himself" and undertake the
conversion of the pueblo of Chilili, a Tiwa pueblo on the
eastern side of the Manzano mountains. His work there
started not later than 1614, and possibly as early as 1613. In
1616 Fray Agustin de Burgos went to Chilili to assist him in
the baptism of his neophytes. Peinado served at Chilili until
his death in 1622 or 1623.63
Thus we find that during the period from 1610 to 1616
there were ten mission centers with convents or friar-
houses: Santa Fe, San Ildefonso, Nambe, Galisteo, San
Lazaro, Santo Domingo, Sia, Sandia, Isleta, and Chilili.
In 1617 the cabildo of Santa Fe reported that there were
eleven churches in the province.64 This number evidently
included the churches in the missions with convents and
the church at San Juan. Apparently no churches had been
built in San Felipe and Cochiti, visitas of Santo Domingo,
nor in Santa Ana, visita of Sia.
In 1616 a new group of seven friars was sent out to
the New Mexico missions. This group apparently arrived
at about the end of December, 1616. At the same time Fray
Estevan de Perea received a dispatch naming him local
Concepcion (1636-38), Fray Juan Juarez (1640-41), Fray Miguel de Sacristan (1658,
1660), Fray Francisco de Salazar (1659-60), Fray Salvador de Guerra (1660),
Fray Diego de Parraga and Fray Joseph de Paredes (1662), Fray Tomas de
Alvarado (1665), Fray Nicolas del Villar (1668-69), Fray Hernando de Monroy (ca.
1669), Fray Francisco G6mez de la Cadena (1672), Fray Juan de Zavaleta (1680).
63. We have a letter of Peinado, dated at Chilili on October 4, 1622, A.G.N., Civil,
tomo 77. In the following year reports were evidently sent to Mexico City indicating
that fourteen friars were then serving in New Mexico. A list of fourteen as of that
year can be compiled without including Peinado, so we infer that he died in the latter
part of 1622 or in the following year before the dispatches were sent to New Mexico.
Other friars who served at Chilili prior to the Pueblo Revolt were Fray Francisco
de Salazar (1634-36, 1659), Fray Fernando de Velasco (ca. 1660,), and Fray Fran-
cisco Gomez de la Cadena (1671-72).
64. Bancroft, op. cit., p. 159.
336 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
prelate with the title of custodian. The decision of the
superiors of the Franciscan Order in Mexico City to give
the New Mexico missions the status of a custodia, or semi-
autonomous unit, wtihin the province of the Holy Evangel
was undoubtedly inspired to a very great extent by the
progress that had been achieved since 1610.
(To be continued)
JUAN MARTINEZ DE MONTOYA,
SETTLER AND CONQUISTADOR OF NEW MEXICO
By FRANCE V. SCHOLES
IN A LETTER to the viceroy, dated August 24, 1607, Juan
de Ofiate resigned his commission as governor and cap-
tain general of New Mexico and stated that unless immediate
action was taken to provide aid and reinforcements he would
be obliged to permit the colonists to abandon the province.
This dispatch and other reports were brought to Mexico
City by Fray Lazaro Ximenez, who arrived in the viceregal
capital toward the end of 1607. After consultation with
members of the audiencia, Viceroy Velasco accepted Onate's
resignation and on February 27, 1608, named Captain Juan
Martinez de Montoya, then serving in the province, to act
as governor &d interim until a final decision was reached
concerning the future of the colony. When Velasco's order
was received in San Gabriel later in the year, the cabildo
refused to accept Martinez as governor, alleging "that he
was not a soldier and other reasons which they said were
not convenient to mention in public." The cabildo asked
Ofiate to continue as governor, but he refused. Then, with
the approval of Fray Francisco de Escobar, the commissary
of the Franciscans, Onate's son, Don Cristobal, was ap-
pointed governor in a cabildo abierto. Don Cristobal held
office until the arrival of Don Pedro de Peralta about a year
and a half later.1
Who was this Juan Martinez de Montoya whom the
cabildo of San Gabriel refused to accept as governor of
New Mexico? What was the nature of his services in New
Mexico prior to 1608. Is it true that he was not a soldier,
as the cabildo alleged ? Answers to these questions are found
in documents which I had the opportunity to examine several
1. The documents on this episode are found in Archive General de Indias (cited
hereinafter as A.G.I.), Mexico, leg. 27. See also G. P. Hammond, Don Juan de Onate
and the Founding of New Mexico (Santa Fe, 1927), pp. 172-178.
337
338 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
years ago.2 These papers contain, among other things, a
document executed at San Gabriel on October 6, 1606, in
which Juan de Onate certified Martinez' services in New
Mexico up to that time, and a supplementary statement of
services presented by Martinez before Cristobal de Onate
on August 9, 1608.
The documents record that Juan Martinez de Montoya
was born on January 11, 1561, at a place called Nabalaga-
mella, two leagues from El Escorial in Spain. They do not
provide information, however, as to the year in which he
came to Mexico.
On August 28, 1599, Martinez enlisted in Mexico City
as an alf erez in one of the companies of the reinforcements
then being organized for New Mexico. During the succeed-
ing four months he used his personal funds to support other
soldiers of the expedition, and on December 23, 1599, he
was raised to the rank of captain. On January 2, 1600, he
set out from Mexico City, taking recruits to the valley of
San Bartolome on the northern frontier, and in the follow-
ing summer, during the inspection of the force, he was ap-
pointed a member of the war council. He arrived in New
Mexico with the relief expedition in December, 1600.
With the arrival of the reinforcements Onate was in
a position to carry out his plan for an expedition to the
eastern plains. On April 20, 1601, Martinez was named
one of the captains of the army, and he gave a good account
of himself in the battle with the Escanjaques at the Quivira
settlements. He later participated in a punitive expedition
which Onate made against the Indians of Taos, and during
this affair also he won a good reputation. No date is given
for the entrada to the Taos area but it evidently occurred
in 1602 or 1603.
In the latter part of 1603 or during the first half of
1604 Martinez accompanied a force, which also included
2. The documents mentioned above were owned by Maggs Bros, of London when
I saw them. They had the following general title: D. Juan Saez Maurigade, vecino de
esta Corte, sobre que se incluya en la descendencia directa del Capitan D. Juan Mar-
tinez de Montoya, descubridor, conquistador y poblador que fue en las America* V
Governador del Nuevo Mexico.
JUAN MARTINEZ DE MONTOYA 339
Fray Francisco de Velasco, "comisario apostolico," Fray
Juan de Escalona, and Fray Francisco de Escobar,3 to the
pueblo of Acoma. Here peaceful relations were established,
temporarily at least, with the Indians, who had apparently
remained hostile since 1599 when severe punishment had
been imposed upon them for the death of Juan de Zaldivar
and others in the autumn of 1598. From Acoma Father
Velasco, with an escort of twelve soldiers commanded by
Captain Jeronimo Marquez and including Martinez, went
on to the Zufii and Moqui districts, and thence to the land
of the Cruzados, where veins of ore were found4 and reports
of the South Sea were received.
This reconnaissance was followed by Ofiate's entrada
to the Gulf of California in 1604-1605. At this time, how-
ever, Martinez remained in San Gabriel serving* as a member
of the war council in the villa.5 Although Martinez did not
accompany Onate to the South Sea, he gave five horses for
the expedition.
In 1605 he served as alcalde ordinario of San Gabriel,
winning approval for the manner in which he administered
justice during the period when Onate was absent in New
Spain.6 In the autumn of the following year (1606) the
3. Escalona had been commissary, or local prelate, of the Franciscans in New
Mexico from 1600 to the coming of a new group of friars with Escobar in 1603.
According to Torquemada (Monarchic^ Indiana, ed. 1723, vol. 1, p. 678) Escobar was
appointed commissary to succeed Escalona, but with the provision that Velasco, who
accompanied Escalona to New Mexico in 1600, should serve for a year before Escobar
took office. It is interesting to note, therefore, that this arrangement was carried out.
Later in the year 1604 Escobar evidently entered upon his duties as commissary, for
he held the title at the time of Onate's expedition to the South Sea, which set out
from provincial headquarters in October.
4. Before Onate set out on the expedition to the South Sea he sent reports to
the viceroy and samples of ore "taken from mines that have been discovered." In a
letter to the king, dated March 31, 1605, Viceroy Montesclaros stated that the ore
had been assayed and that the best contained one-eighth copper, "without a trace of
silver." These ores probably came from the veins discovered during the preliminary
expedition of Velasco and his companions to the west which preceded the main entrada
to the Gulf of California.
5. A document of 1604 executed during Oiiate's absence indicates that Martinez
de Montoya also held the title of secretary of war and government at this time.
Archivo General de la Nacion, Mexico, Provincias Internas, tomo 34, exp. 1.
6. After his return from the Gulf of California, Onate set out for New Spain to
make a report to the viceroy. Arriving in San Bartolome in August, 1605, he sent
a letter to the viceroy seeking permission to continue the journey to Mexico City. The
viceroy somewhat reluctantly granted permission, but for some reason Oiiate returned
to New Mexico without waiting for the viceroy's reply. A.G.I., Mexico, leg. 26.
340 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
maestre de campo, Vicente de Zaldivar, who had returned
to New Mexico after an absence of some four years,7 made
an expedition to the sea, evidently to follow up Onate's dis-
covery of 1604-1605. No details are available for this jour-
ney.8 Martinez gave four horses for the expedition, but
remained in San Gabriel as part of a force to protect the
church and royal standard in that settlement.
We also learn that prior to October 6, 1606, when Onate
certified the services of Martinez, the latter had taken part
in campaigns against the Apaches, that he had been granted
an encomienda for three lives in one of the Jemez pueblos
named Santiago, and that he had served as consultor and
asesor of Fray Juan de Escalona. Finally, Onate certified
that Martinez was entitled to the rank of hidalgo, granted
by a royal cedula of 1602 to persons who had served for
five years in the conquest and pacification of New Mexico.
On August 9, 1608, Martinez appeared in Santo Do-
mingo before Cristobal de Onate, then holding office as
governor and captain general, and presented for certifica-
tion a supplementary account of services performed subse-
quent to 1606. This was done evidently after receipt of
the viceroy's nomination of Martinez as governor and the
refusal of the cabildo to accept him in that post.
This document reveals that in 1608 Martinez again
held office as alcalde ordinario in San Gabriel. During 1606-
1607 he had served twice as captain of a force sent out
against marauding Apaches, and on another occasion in
this same period he took part in an expedition led by Cris-
tobal de Onate against Apaches who had been bold enough
to attack San Gabriel. Sometime during the year 1607-1608,
while the colony was waiting for the viceroy's reply to
Onate's resignation, Martinez had also helped to discover
some mines at a place called San Buenaventura. We also
learn that he had participated in the burning of some idols,
7. Zaldivar returned to New Spain with two friars and a group of soldiers sent
out in 1605.
8. In his letter of resignation of August 24, 1607, Ofiate referred to the "great
news, confirmed last year, of the wealth and greatness of the interior country," and
of which he said he was sending a report to the viceroy. This may relate to Zaldivar's
expedition of 1606. A.G.I., Mexico, leg. 26.
JUAN MARTINEZ DE MONTOYA 341
indicating that the friars were already beginning their
active campaigns against Pueblo religion.
But the most interesting data recorded for the year
1607-1608 are brief references to a place called Santa Fe
and statements indicating that some sort of post or settle-
ment was being established there. In December, 1608, when
messengers brought new reports to the viceroy, the latter
was informed of plans to establish a new villa and provincial
capital ; and in his instructions to Pedro de Peralta, the new
royal governor appointed in 1609, Velasco stipulated that
Peralta's first duty should be "la fundacion y poblacion de
la villa que se pretende."9 In 1610 Peralta officially founded
the villa of Santa Fe, in accordance with this instruction.10
It would appear, however, that the beginnings of settlement
there occurred as early as 1608 and that at such time the
site was already known as Santa Fe.
On August 10, 1608, Cristobal de Onate certified Mar-
tinez' supplementary statement of services. At the same
time he also granted him permission to leave New Mexico
as part of the escort of Fray Lazaro Ximenez and Fray
Isidro Ordonez who were taking the reports to the viceroy.
The foregoing review of Martinez's activities in New
Mexico indicates that the statement that he was not a
soldier, made by the cabildo in 1608 and given as one of
the reasons for refusing to accept him as governor, was
not true. On the contrary, he had actively participated in
the military affairs of the province and he had evidently
enjoyed the confidence of the elder Onate.
As for the other reasons alleged by the cabildo in
defense of their action and which they deemed inexpedient
to make public, we have no inkling whatever. It would
appear, however, that the cabildo desired to keep the gov-
ernorship in the Onate family as long as possible. Whether
or not this desire was inspired in any way by Juan de Onate
himself, it is impossible to say. His letter of resignation
of August 24, 1607, seems to indicate that he was com-
9. The instructions of Peralta have been published in the NEW MEX. HIST. REV.,
IV (1929), pp. 178-187.
10. Cf. L. B. Bloom, "When was Santa Fe founded?" in ibid., IV, 188-194.
342 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
pletely discouraged by the failure of the viceroy and Crown
to grant his requests in the matter of extensive aid for
New Mexico and that he wished to be free of further re-
sponsibility for a venture in which he had spent his fortune.
He may have hoped, however, that by resigning he
could force the Crown to assume financial support of the
province and that at the same time it would reward his
services by appointing him or his son as royal governor.
In such case, he may have exerted influence on the cabildo
to reject Martinez as governor in 1608. But having sent in
his resignation, it would hardly be proper or expedient at
such time to resume office, as the cabildo requested. The
election of his son would, however, keep the governorship in
the family until the viceroy and Crown reached a formal
decision about the future of New Mexico.
But all this is pure speculation and may well have no
justification. Whatever Onate's real motives may have been,
the viceroy accepted his resignation at face value, and in
1609 he appointed Pedro de Peralta as royal governor. At
the same time he sent orders for Onate and his son to leave
New Mexico within three months after Peralta's arrival. On
his return to New Spain, Onate was subjected to residencies
proceedings and in 1614 sentence was pronounced imposing
various penalties for offenses committed during his term
of office.
The decision of Martinez to leave New Mexico in 1608
was undoubtedly prompted by the action of the cabildo in
denying him the governorship and by a desire to present a
statement of his services to the viceroy, perhaps in the hope
of receiving some reward elsewhere. He never returned to
New Mexico. The record of his services summarized in this
brief paper clarifies the career of one of the founders of
New Mexico and adds a few new facts, notably the details
about the beginnings of Santa Fe, to our knowledge of the
Onate period.
BOOK REVIEWS
Diary and Letters of Josiah Gregg. Book II, Excursions in
Mexico and California, 1847-1850. Edited by Maurice Gar-
land Fulton with an Introduction by Paul Horgan. (Univer-
sity of Oklahoma Press, 1944. Copyright, pp. 396, with
Appendix and Index. Illustrated. $4.00.)
Volume I of the Diary and Letters of Josiah Gregg, pub-
lished three years ago, gave details of Gregg's career from
his retirement from the Santa Fe trade in 1840 to the eve
of the Battle of Buena Vista in 1847. It was a sequel to
Gregg's famous "Commerce of the Prairies" and formed
the transition from the life intimately connected with Santa
Fe, and the Santa Fe Trail to the broader scientific and
exploratory career in Mexico and the Pacific Coast, ending
in Gregg's tragic death from starvation and exhaustion
after the discovery of Humboldt Bay.
Though somewhat disconnected, and interspersed with
tedious data of meteorological and geographic observations
of little interest at this day, the diary in the main continues
exciting in its story of the war with Mexico, its observations
on conditions in the neighboring republic, along the Pacific
Coast during the days of the Gold Rush and its account of
the primitive region north of San Francisco. In these years
there were also revisits to the States as far as the National
Capitol where he called on the president of whom he wrote :
"I was so astonished at the evident weakness of Mr. Polk,
that I then felt like I would not accept anything at his hands
— and departed accordingly. It is remarkable that a man so
short of intellect should have been placed in the executive
chair ! But, our surprise is diminished when we reflect that
he was, virtually, not elected by the people, but by a caucus
at Baltimore, who rather desire a 'creature' than talents, to
serve designing politicians as a tool. Really, it savours illy
for the stability of our institutions that a set of demagogues
should point out to the people, for their president, a man
never dreamed of before, and that these should so implicitly
obey the will of the caucus, as to elect without discussion, the
man they were bid to vote for !"
343
344 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
It is this querulousness, and criticism of high and low,
which runs throughout the Diary increasing its interest and
possibly arousing resentment such as even to this day is the
reaction of those in the Spanish Southwest reading for the
first time Commerce of the Prairies.
Paul Horgan, in a delightful biographical characteriza-
tion of Gregg, which precedes the Diary in this second vol-
ume, takes a milder, and perhaps, juster view of Gregg's
continual fault finding, and writes, for instance :
"Gregg had some just and sensible remarks to make on
the subject of military reprisals against enemy nations.
General Taylor had issued some particularly sharp orders,
and Gregg could see, at the time, how cruel and unjust they
were. He took justice and reason with him wherever he
went, or tried to, despite the unreliability of his health and
his resultant capacity for indignation, which was at times
boundless. But if he became indignant on his own account
more often than was quite dignified, he also spared no wrath
upon those who persecuted others. In his accounts of the
army in Mexico, and of people on the move generally, we get
his ethical flavor at its best." As a matter of fact, savagery
ascribed by Gregg to Texan and Missouri troops in Mexico
is a blot upon their victorious invasion of the neighboring
republic, excusable only because similar incidents were
ascribed to the enemy.
"Observing the Battle of Buena Vista" is a detailed
account of one of the notable victories of General Taylor's
campaign in northern Mexico. One gets the impression that
Gregg would have fought a better battle and won a greater
victory had he been in command. He writes in his Diary :
"The Mexican cavalry (Lanceros) after approaching within
about seventy yards halted; at which our cavalry all fired
their carbines, but without killing a man — which emboldened
the enemy to make the charge ; otherwise they would prob-
ably have approached no nearer. This demonstrated what
I had already thought — that volunteer cavalry should not
be left to fight on horseback."
BOOK REVIEWS 345
"With Doniphan's Missourians" continues criticisms of
American troops and their commanders. He is certain that
credit given and bestowed upon Doniphan belonged to
others. He had a personal quarrel and encounter with
General Wool which at the present day would probably have
resulted in court martial.
A year in Saltillo, December 1847, to December 1848,
practicing medicine, was the happiest in Gregg's career. In
April, 1848, his practice amounted to "between four and
five hundred dollars." In May he averaged more than $20
per day. However, he asserts, that if he charged as did a
neighboring doctor, his "practice would be worth over $5,000
a month."
On a visit to Mexico City, he describes a fiesta and
religious procession. "The spectacle (in the church) was at
once appalling, amusing and ridiculous in the extreme," he
writes. "The whole company (of the Matachinas) were in a
kneeling posture, and engaged in saying their prayers, to all
appearance most vehemently — accompanied with sobs, cries
and even tears trickling down the cheeks of many — well we
might add 'weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth* —
crying with all the earnestness of a child. To add to the
strange variety of the scene, there were many babes whose
cries were mingled with those of the men and women, and
reminded one of the mewing of cats." He continues : "Poor,
miserable creatures ! Nobody demonstrates more fidelity or
rather fanaticism, in their religion than they ! But what is
it at last but idolatry?" Thus Gregg, despite his scientific
and professional attainments, completely misunderstood the
character and motives of others.
"Tour to California" and final portions of the diary are
less vivid but continue querulous. Approaching San Fran-
cisco he writes "I had the misfortune to be seasick nearly the
whole voyage. What most annoyed me perhaps of any other
one thing was the incessant smoking of some of the pas-
sengers." Personally, Gregg "never drank, didn't like it,
was temperate in both food and drink." Gregg was a lonely
man, a dreamer, a wanderer, seeking new lands and engag-
346 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
ing in new enterprises. "A reproduction of a daguerreotype
taken in New York about 1844, shows a handsome young
man, of sensitive, melancholy but stubborn mien." Horgan
points out that the fatal flaw in his character was the lack of
a sense of humor ; "nowhere was there a healing gust of
laughter."
Maurice Garland Fulton of the New Mexico Military
Institute at Roswell, who found the original journal in the
possession of Claude Hardewicke (a descendant of Josiah
Gregg's brother, John Gregg) , has performed an admirable
task in editing the diary. It is an important contribution
not only to the history of the West but also of the times a
century ago. — P.A.F.W.
The Boom of the Eighties in Southern California. By Glenn
S. Dumke. (Huntington Library, San Marino, Calif.; 1944.
xi 313 pp., illus., end-map, bibliog., index. $3.75.)
The author reports only two writers who have pre-
viously dealt with this subject: one, an excellent but un-
published manuscript at Occidental College; the other, a
book-length description but "an uproarious lampooning of
the antics of the boomers." Dr. Dumke calls his own work
"an attempt to tell the full story, as depicted in public docu-
ments, in newspapers and other contemporary accounts,
and in the mass of literature on the history of California."
(p. ix) Although embarrassed by the plethora of source
materials, he encountered some gaps in important phases
of the study; nevertheless he has succeeded in producing
a vloume which will be of absorbing interest to numerous
pioneers who had some part in bringing about the marvellous
transformation of southern California as well as to countless
others who, as visitors, have since roamed through those
parts.
For a hundred years (from 1769), the economy of
southern California remained chiefly pastoral. After the
American Occupation and the gold rush of 1849, many
sought to change over from livestock to agricultural pur-
suits : vineyards and citrus groves, wheat, barley and similar
BOOK REVIEWS 347
crops, walnuts and almonds, apples, peaches, figs and other
fruits. The olive industry also got a secure foothold in the
south. Yet, "the immediate cause of the great boom is gen-
erally conceded to be the rate war between the Southern
Pacific and the Santa Fe railroads, which occurred in March
of 1887." (p. 17)
In this connection the author has perhaps relied on
some early "prospectus" rather than facts, for the Santa
Fe railroad did not reach Albuquerque in 1873 (p. 22), —
the truth is that the rails did not enter New Mexico at
Raton Pass until late in 1878. Construction was completed
to Albuquerque in April 1880, and to Deming on the South-
ern Pacific on March 10, 1881. Even then, for many years,
the "connection" at Deming for through travelers was a
euphemism; as late as 1910 the writer recalls being jolted
in a bus for a long mile across town from one station to
the other. By June 1881, the Santa Fe line did reach El
Paso, but it was by a branch line down the Rio Grande from
Rincon Junction.
But the Santa Fe line reached southern California more
directly by absorbing the early "Atlantic & Pacific" (from
Albuquerque westward) and two subsidiary lines in Cali-
fornia. Los Angeles was entered as early as September 1885
"on tracks leased from the Southern Pacific but not until
it obtained its own roadbed did the Santa Fe start the rate
war which in turn began the boom." (p. 23) Some details
of that fight seem incredible. The record shows that the
Southern Pacific went as low as one dollar for tickets from
Kansas City to Los Angeles — tricked by the Santa Fe line,
which claimed to have sold none below $8.00.
Such competition on passengers and freight, together
with such high-pressure advertising as was used (Chapter
IV) brought on inevitably the spectacular boom-conditions
of the 1880's. The author develops his theme in chapters
on "The Boom in Los Angeles" and "Speculation on the
Shore"; then other suburban centers of the boom: "The
San Gabriel Valley and Pasadena," "Glendale, Burbank,
and the San Fernando Valley," "Pomona and the Irrigation
348 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
Settlements," and "The Santa Ana Valley." Somewhat far-
ther afield, we have chapters on "The San Bernardino
County Flurry," "The Boom in the San Diego Area," and
"The Rural Boom in the North : Santa Barbara and Ventura
Counties." The last chapters take up various ephemeral
and permanent results of the boom : "Ghost Towns," "Men
and Methods," "Irrigation Improvements," "Encouragement
for Education," and "The End of the Boom."
One is tempted to quote and comment at many points.
Two choice bits from promotional advertising must suffice:
"The locality of Eden was lost to the world, until Carlson
and Higgins discovered Ocean Beach." (p. 151) And once
when San Diego had an actual population of about 50,000,
a realty firm announced: "In fact, we may say that San
Diego has a population of 150,000 people, only they are not
all here yet." (p. 138) The numerous glimpses of well-
known Californians is by no means the least fascinating
quality of this book.
The press work is excellent, with one exception. In
numerous cases the printing of the semi-colon and colon is
so faint in comparison with that of the letters that one
"reads over" such punctuation — and is exasperated by hav-
ing to double back in order to recover the train of thought.
This is an annoyance but it does not change the excellent
work which Dr. Dumke has done. — L.B.B.
NECROLOGY
MIGUEL ANTONIO OTERO n
For almost nine years, 1897 to 1906, as governor of the
Territory of New Mexico, Miguel Antonio Otero II was
the pivot of economic development and the storm center
of political intrigue which, a few years later, culminated
in statehood for the Territory. On Monday morning, Aug-
ust 7, 1944, he died peacefully at his home on East Palace
Avenue in Santa Fe.
The late Ralph E. Twitchell, historian, summed up the
achievements of that period of growth as follows : "At the
time of his retirement from the governorship, New Mexico
was never in a more prosperous condition. In all lines of
industry there was great activity. The territorial finances
were in a most excellent condition." Contemporaries, still
living, ascribe the prosperity of that period in New Mexico's
history to the wisdom of Otero in surrounding himself with
strong men who worked hand in hand with him in control-
ling legislation, influencing capital to build railroads, found-
ing new towns and encouraging the basic industries of the
Southwest by thrift in public finance and low taxes. These
men included Solomon Luna and Holm 0. Bursum repre-
senting the livestock industry ; H. L. Waldo and W. A. Haw-
kins representing great railroad systems; Charles and
Frank Springer, representatives of the coal mining indus-
tries ; and J. W. Raynolds and Max Frost, astute politicians,
who with their satellites controlled elections and wrote the
laws passed by subservient legislatures. The details of
that phase in the life of Otero would fill volumes and are
told in some part in autobiographical apologia by Otero
himself in his My Life on the Frontier 1864-1882, My Mem-
oirs 1882-1897, and My Nine Years as Governor of the
Territory of New Mexico 1897-1906. For this present sketch,
bare biographical dates and data must suffice.
Miguel Antonio Otero II was born in St. Louis, Mis-
souri, on October 17, 1849, the son of Miguel Antonio Otero
349
350 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
I, and Mary Josephine Blackwood. When two years old,
his parents took him back to their home in New Mexico,
crossing- the plains in a stage coach. His early education
was desultory but in his youth he attended St. Louis Uni-
versity and Notre Dame. He followed in the footsteps of
his father in business and political life, first as bookkeeper
for Otero, Sellar and Company, of which his father was
the founder and senior member and which later became
the present firm of Gross, Kelly and Company. Then from
1880-1885, he was cashier of the San Miguel National Bank
of which his father was president. Launching into politics
Otero was city treasurer of Las Vegas, 1883-1884 ; probate
clerk of San Miguel County, 1889-1890 ; clerk of the Fourth
Judicial District under Chief Justice) James O'Brien, 1890
to 1893. After the expiration of his term as governor of
the territory, 1897-1906, he was treasurer of New Mexico,
1910 and 1911 ; president of the board of penitentiary com-
missioners and parole board, 1913-1917; U. S. marshall
of the Panama Canal Zone, 1917-1921; president of the
board of regents of the New Mexico Normal University,
1923-1925 and 1933-1934; chairman, state advisory board,
Federal Emergency Administration of Public Works, 1933 ;
^delegate to the Republican national conventions in 1888,
1892, 1900, 1904, 1908, being chairman of the New Mexico
delegation in 1900 and 1904. He was on the committee
which notified Benjamin Harrison of his nomination to
the presidency and thus first met William McKinley who
was chairman of the committee, a meeting which later bore
fruitful consequences. He was delegate to the Progressive
national convention in 1912 and served on the Progressive
national committee in 1910. Otero later completed the swing
into the Democratic party, being chairman of the Panama
Canal Zone delegations to the Democratic national conven-
tions of 1920 and 1924, also being a member of the Demo-
cratic national committee. That his political! influence had
declined, after he cut loose from Republican leadership in
New Mexico, was apparent when he was defeated for the
NECROLOGY 351
state senate from Santa Fe County by a comparative new-
comer, Benjamin F. Pankey, a Republican, who later be-
came lieutenant-governor of New Mexico.
Otero's appointment to the governorship of New Mexico
was due to several fortuitous circumstances. Pedro Perea,
a former president of the First National Bank of Santa
Fe, had been urged for the position by S. B. Elkins, also
a former president of the bank, delegate to congress from
New Mexico and later U. S. senator from West Virginia
and secretary of war in the Harrison cabinet. It seemed
certain that President McKinley would send the name of
Perea to the U. S. senate for confirmation. However, Elkins
failed to keep an appointment in the matter with the secre-
tary of the interior and the president and the appointment
went by the board. Otero was in Washington, D. C., at the
time, seeking to be named U. S. marshall for New Mexico.
Old friendships were recalled, some of them going back to Mc-
Kinley's home in Canton, Ohio. The president, impressed with
Otero's personal charm, nominated him to the governorship
which was confirmed by the U. S. senate, as was his reap-
pointment, the latter after considerable opposition from
New Mexico.
As pointed out, it was an eventful period in the history
of the Territory. Both presidents, McKinley and Roosevelt,
visited New Mexico. Agitation for statehood was a lively
topic, resulting in a proposition to admit New Mexico and
Arizona as one state at the time that Oklahoma
and Indian Territory were given the boon as one
state. While popular vote in New Mexico approved,
it was defeated at the polls by Arizona. There was
considerable under cover opposition to statehood on the
plea that it would greatly increase public expenditures with-
out bringing commensurable improvement in economic and
political conditions. However, a few years later, statehood
was granted and New Mexico became a state of the Union by
1912. Curiously enough, a feud by Otero with the Republi-
can state chairman, Frank A. Hubbell, was the mainspring
which brought about eventual success of the statehood
movement. The battle was won by Otero, resulting in the
352 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
retirement not only of Hubbell as state chairman but also in
the defeat for renomination of the then delegate to congress,
Bernard S. Rodey, and the nomination of William H.
Andrews, recently from Pennsylvania, political satellite of
U. S. Senators Quay and Penrose from that state, and of
U. S. Senator Platt of New York, with whose aid the enab-
ling act was put over in congress and signed by President
Taft.
A number of new state institutions and several new
counties were created during Governor Otero's administra-
tion. Territorial finances were placed in order, public debts
reduced and excellent legislation placed on the statute books.
The governor took the lead in organizing the famous Rough
Rider regiment in the Spanish-American war.
Interested in several mining ventures, Otero was also
engaged in the sheep business with J. Wallace Raynolds, but
the financial success which had marked his father's enter-
prises, failed to be his own lot. Besides the three auto-
biographical volumes mentioned, he was also the author of
Buccaneers of England, France and Holland (1925) and
The Real Billy the Kid with New Light on the Lincoln
County War (1935) . Most remarkable were Otero's annual
reports which he made as governor of the territory to the
secretary of the territory, each volume running into hun-
dreds of printed pages. They were an encyclopedic com-
pendium of the development, resources, finances and gov-
ernment of New Mexico, carefully compiled and arranged.
He was a member and at one time a vice-president of the
New Mexico Historical Society, a 32nd degree Mason, a
Knight Templar, a member of the Shrine, a Knight of
Pythias, a member of the Benevolent Order of Elks, the
Santa Fe Club, the Union Club of Panama and the Panama
Golf Club.
Governor Otero was twice married. His first wife was
Caroline V., daughter of ex-Chief Justice L. Emmett of
Minnesota, the marriage having taken place on December 19,
1888. To them were born three children: Miguel A. 3rd,
deceased; Elizabeth, deceased; and Miguel A. Otero, Jr.,
who has won distinction in U. S. military service and in
NECROLOGY 353
public life and who survives him. Governor Otero's second
wife, who also survives him, was Mrs. Maud Paine Frost,
whom he married on October 1, 1913, the widow of Colonel
Max Frost. The latter had been publisher of the Santa Fe
Daily New Mexican and chief journalistic supporter of
Otero during turbulent partisan politics.
The funeral took place from St. Francis Cathedral in
Santa Fe, on Thursday forenoon, August 10. A low mass
was read by Father Jerome Hesse, O.F.M., of Gallup. Arch-
bishop Edwin V. Byrne gave the blessing. Governor
Dempsey, accompanied by Brigadier General Ray Andrew,
his adjutant general, attended the funeral services. The
state house flag was at half mast during the forenoon. Burial
was in Fairview Cemetery. — P.A.F.W.
354 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
ERRATA
Page 103, note 13, for Letter to read Letter of
Page 109, line 23, for numbered 33 read the room num-
bered 33
Page 142, line 31, for minuets read minuet
line 32, for bailes read baile
Page 243, line 24, read foregoing statement
Page 250, last lines, for rectified read ratified
Page 255, left margin, for second 1920 read 1930
NEW MEXICO
HISTORICAL REVIEW
INDEX
Abel, Annie H., cited, 198, 203
Abert, Lieut., quoted, 99
Abreu, Don Ramon, mention, 283 (note)
Acevedo, Fray Francisco de, mention, 334
(note)
Acoma pueblo, mention, 339
Adams, Eleanor B., "Two Colonial N. Mex.
Libraries, 1704, 1776," 135-167
"Adobe Palace, The," by C. P. Anderson,
97-122
agricultural agents, county (1917-8), 20, 21
agricultural development (1918-20) 53
Aguirre, Fray Bernardo de, at Santa Fe,
332 (note)
Albuquerque, early R.R. junction, 97
Albuquerque Morn. Journal, quoted (1917-
8), 7-53 passim
alcalde, administering justice (1850), 276-
7, 281, 283
Alcalde, Plaza, mention (1849), 198
Alvarado, Fray Tomas de, at Sia, 334
(note) ; at Isleta, 335 (note)
Alvarez, Fray Francisco, mention, 334
(note)
Anderson, A. A. Adj. Gen'l A. L.f at
Santa Fe (1861) quoted, 70 (note)
Anderson, Clinton P., gifts to Society, 96 ;
"The Adobe Palace," 97-122
Anderson, Geo. Baker, quoted (1906), 123,
125, 126
Andrews, William H., mention, 352
Apaches, in 1850's, 272, 280-3; 289 (note)
Aranda, Fray Antonio de, at Santa Fe,
332 (note)
Arapahoes, mention (1850's), 290, 293-5
Archuleta, Juan Andres, mention, 198
(note)
Archuleta, Pantaleon, mention (1849), 198
Arizona, American beginnings in, 58-76
passim; Confed. Terr, of, (1860), 60,
72, 73, 74; a lynching, 233-242, 312-318
Arny, W. F. M., mention (1867), 103, 119
Arvide, Fray Martin de, mention, 334
(note)
Asumpcion, Fray Cristobal de, mention,
331 and note
Atkinson, Henry M., mention (1881), 113
Atlantic & Pacific R'y Co., grant in 1866,
mention, 249 ; 347
Augur, Wheaton, necrology, 89
Autobee (Autuber), Charles, living at Red
River (1850), 280 and note, 281
Avila, Fray Francisco de, mention, 334
(note)
Ayeta, Fray Francisco de, quoted (1672),
227
Aztlan, by W. G. Ritch, 98
Baker, Judge Grafton, quoted (1857), 101
Bancroft, H. H., cited 57, 59, 60, 61-2-8-4,
74 ; quoted, 77 ; cited, 140, 233, 324, 325
Bandelier, A. F. A., cited, 310 (note), 325
Baptista, Fray Andres, mention, 331, 333
Barclay, Alexander, mention (1856), 810
and note
Barreiro, Don Antonio, mention, 283 (note)
Bartlett, John R., quoted, 55-6; 57
Barnes, Julius H., mention (1917), 3, 22, 24
Barnes, Judge R. P., war work (1917-8).
40
Barth, Mrs. Isaac, mention (1918), 34
Bates, Judge Edward, at Santa Fe (1861).
69 (note)
Baxter, Sylvester, mention (1880's), 238
Baylor, Lt. Col. John R., 71, 72, 74
Beall, Col. Benj. L., mention (1849), 196,
198, 202, 210, 211, 220-1
Bean, Sam, Ariz, marshall (1860), 61
beans, in N. Mex. (1917-8), 20, 21, 23, 24-
29, 39, 53
Beaubien, Judge Carlos, mention (1849),
199; 223, 278, 290
Beauregard, Donald, murals by, 85
Bellamy, Edward, in relation to Land of
Shalam, 124, 130, 134
Benavides, Fray Alonso de, cited (1630).
225, 226; his relaciones, 319; cited, 382
Beristain y Souza, quoted, 325
Bernal, Fray Juan, mention, 334 (note)
Betz, A. B., war work (19J&), 39
Bickley, Justice Howard L., mention, 188
Bieber, R. P., cited, 290 (note) ; quoted,
310 (note)
Bloom, L. B., book revs., 83-5, 250, 346-348 ;
cited, 137, 319, 341; ed. "Lynching at
Tucson," 233-242, 312-318; with F. V.
Scholes, "Friar Personnel . . . 1598-
1629," 319-338
Blue Book of 1882, original Ritch mg.
given to Society, 96 ; 98
books, found (1776) at various missions,
164-7. See Libraries
Boule, E. N., war work (1917-8), 40
boundary, internat'l, in dispute (1848), 55.
56-8
Bourlve, John G., "A Lynching at Tucson
in 1873," 233-242, 312-318
Boyd, David Ross, war work (1917-8). 40
Brayer, Herbert, mention, 251
Breeden, Wm., mention, 111, 112, 118, 115,
116
Brice, C. B., mention (1910), 178. 176.
177, 183
Britton, Bernhardt Rob't., necrology, 258-9
broomcorn, in N. Mex. (1917-8), 29-30
355
356
NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
Bureau of Immigration, beginning (1882),
98
Burgos, Fray Agustin de, mention, 331 ; at
San Lazaro, 833 ; at Sia, 334 (note)
Burkhart, Summers, mention (1911), 181
Bursum, H. O., mention (1918), 50; men-
tion (1910), 172, 173
Bush, H. G., of Deming (1918), 38, 48
Cache la Poudre, mention (1853), 302
Calhoun, James S., indifferent to boun-
dary trouble (1851), 57; occupied room
in Palace, 100
California,, The Boom of the Eighties in
Southern, by G. S. Dumke, rev'd by
Bloom, 346-8
cammita, game with hollow canes, 217
Canby, Col. E. R. S., at Ft. Craig (1861),
68 (note) ; 69
Carboneli, Fray Antonio, place of death, 84
Carrascal, Fray Pedro de, discussed, 324
Carroll, J. A., Mescalero Indian agent
(1908), 265
Carson, Kit, guide (1849), 204
Cartwright, Mr., of Independence, Mo.
(1849), 194-5
Catron, T. B., mention (1883), 115; (1910),
172, 182
Catron, John Walz, necrology, 259-60
census supervisors of New Mexico, list
of, 255
Chapman, Kenneth M., mention, 85
chaguehue, stiff corn mush, 286-7
Charlefour, Jean Baptiste, mention, 199,
note
Chaves, Col. J. Francisco, mention (1868),
102 (note) ; 103, mention (1889), 169
Chihuahua, State of, & the boundary dis-
pute (1851), 57
Childers, J. W., mention (1910), 173
Chilili pueblo, early mission, 335 and note
Clancy, John G., of Puerto de Luna (1889,
1910), 169
Clark, John D., war work (1918), 39
Claros, Fray Juan, mention, 320, 322-3,
327, 328
Clever, C. P., mention, 280
Cochiti pueblo, a visita (1614), 334, 335
cof radios in N. Mex. (1777), 143
Cold Spring, on Santa Fe Trail, mention,
189
Collins, Col. James L., mention (1867),
103, 104
Compton, Sr., C. M., mention (1910), 173
Compton, Judge, J. C., mention, 173
Concepcion, Fray Francisco de la, mention,
335 (note)
Congress, ordered (1852) 2nd boundary
survey, 57; Gadsden Purchase (1853),
58 ; neglect to provide orderly govern-
ment, 59
"Constitution in the Making, N. Mexico's,"
by T. J. Mabry, 168-184
convents, in New Mexico, early, 332, et
seq.
convention, at Tucson (1856), 59; (1860),
60; at Mesilla (1861), 64-7, 72; at Santa
Fe (1850), 168; (1889), 168-9; (1910),
169-170
Cooley, A. C., quoted (1917-8), 21, 23, 33
Corchado, Fray Andres, mention, 320, 322-3.
327, 328
Cordova, Andrew R., book by, rev'd, 80-3
Cordova, Mrs. Sophia A. of Truchas, cited
(1918), 7
corn, in N. Mex. war control (1917-8),
7-23 passim, 29-30 ; molasses, how Mexi-
cans made, 285
Court House in Santa Fe, location (1857),
101
Cozzens, S. W., cited, 56 ; 61
Craig, George R., mention (1918), 50
Crile. A. D., quoted (1918), 19; 51
Cuarac pueblo, mission (1633), 334
Cuerno Verde, Comanche chief, mention
(1851), 292 and note
Curry, George, mention (1910), 183
Cushman, C. O., war work (1918), 39
Custody of N. Mex., library (1777) of, 135,
141, 145-8, 152-163
Daugherty, H. W., mention (1910), 173
Davis, Justice S. B., mention, 183
Davis, W. W. H., typed copy of private
journal, given to Society, 96 ; quoted
(1857), 100-1, 104-6, 107, 108-9
Deavenport Code (1856), quoted, 100
discipline of natives criticized, 84-5
Dominguez, Fray Francisco Atanasio, 139-
146
Dominguez de Mendoza, Juan, mention, 245
(note) ; book on, 246
Donnell, Fred S., necrology, 256
Dona Ana, town (1851), 55; 125
Dona Ana County, enlarged (1854), 59
Doyle, Joseph B., mention, 310 (note)
drought in N. Mex. (1917-8), 23, 30, 54
Dumke, Glenn S., rev. of book by, 346-8
Dunlavy, Melvin T., cited (1918), 14, 15,
30, 32, 38
Duran, Fray Andres, at San Ildefonso, 333
(note)
Eaton, W. Clement, study of "Frontier Life
in Ariz. 1858-61," cited, 59 (note)
INDEX
357
Echavarria, Fray Nicolas, mention, 334
(note)
El Crepiisculo de la Libertad, not pub-
lished in Taos, 283 and note
El Federalista, Spanish edition by Velasco,
rev'd, 250
elkmeat, like horse, 296-7
Elkins, S. B., failed appointment with Pres.
McKinley, 351
Ellis, Jesse M., colonist at Shalam, in court
(1891), 131-3
Elser, W. L. of State Coll., quoted (1917),
30
Ely, Albert, mention, 251
Ely, Ralph C., in 1917-18, 1-48 passim
Embudo, N. Mex., mention (1849), 199
encomenderos, of N. Mex. (1621), 225, 226
Enriquez, Fray Nicolas de, at Santa Fe,
332 (note) ; at Sia, 334 (note)
Escalona, Fray Juan de, mention (1599),
321 ; 322, 323, 326, 828, 329 ; at Santo
Domingo (1604-7), 334 (note) ; 339, 340
Escobar, Fray Francisco de, mention, 323,
326, 327, 331, 337, 339
Escorza, Juan Bautista de, quoted (1693),
231-2
Escudero, Fray Damian, mention, 321, 322,
323, 329
Espinosa, J. Manuel, cited, 137
Espiritu Santo, Fray Domingo del, at
Santa Fe, 332 (note)
Ewell, Capt. Richard S., at Tucson (1860),
Fall, A. B., mention (1918), 51; mention
(1910), 172, 182
Faircloth, Frank, necrology, 93-4
Faithists Calendar, The, 127
farmers of N. Mex., war work (1917-8),
19-30
Fee, L. M., war work (1918), 39
Fergusson, H. B., mention (1910), 173, 177,
178, 180, 181, 183
Field, Neill B., attack on State Council
of Defense (1918), 49-50
Figueredo, Fray Roque de, discussed, 324,
325-6
Fisher, Reginald G., book by, rev'd, 83-5
Fisher, Robert, guide (1849), 204, 206
Fiske, Dr. E. A., mention, 116
Fitzpatrick, Thos., Indian agent, mention,
294
Flores de Sierra y Valdez, Gov. Juan, cited
(1641), 244
flour mills, of N. Mex. (1917-8), 4-54
passim
Flying H Outfit, 261-270 passim
Fonte, Fray Francisco, mention, 334 (note)
food regulations, in N. Mex. (1917-18), 1-54
food substitutes, in N. Mex. (1917-8), 7-g-
10
Fort Bliss, 62, 71
Fort Fillmore, disloyalty at (1861), 68
Fort Garland, Colo., 215, note
Fort Laramie, trading trips to (in 1850's),
300-1
Fort Mann, (Kans., 1849), mention, 188
.Fort Massachusetts, 215, note
Foster, Martin D., mention (1918), 27-28
Fountain (Colo.), mention (1853), 309
Fox, M. L., hostile to Ely (1917-8), 50
Francisco, a donado (1598), 321
Franklin, village of, 62
Freitas, Fray Nicolas de, at Santa Fe, 332
(note) ; at Santo Domingo, 334 (note)
Franco, Fray Diego, at San Ildefonso, 333
(note)
Fremont, Col. John C., mention, 185-186
French Canadians. See Autobee ; Beaubien ;
Labadie ; Le Blanc ; Laforet ; La Port
Frost, Col. Max., mention, 353
Fulton, Maurice G., rev. of book by, 343-6
Gadsden, James, congressional agent
(1853), 58
Gadsden Purchase, added to N. Mex.
(1854), 59
Galisteo, first mission, 333 ; 335
gambling, by Mexicans (1850), 275-6
Ganaway, Loomis M., "N. Mex. & The Sec-
tional Controversy, 1846-61" (concl.), 55-
79 ; mention, 96
Gardner, W. A., Lincoln Co. agent (1917),
21
Georgia history, rev. of book on, 247-8
Germans, in Santa Fe (1849), 186, 190,
195, 196-7, 198, note
gerrymandering, in N. Mex. (1910), 174
Gibson, Geo. Rutledge, quoted, 99-100
Gila River, first community settlements,
58-9
Goddard, Rolland K., with secret service
(1918), 46
Gomez de la Cadena, Fray Francisco, at
Santa Fe, 332 (note) ; at Isleta, 335
(note) ; at Chilili, 335 (note 63)
Grant, Blanche, quoted, 221 (note) ; cited,
291 (note)
Greenhorn (Cuerno Verde) early settle-
ment, mention (1851), 292 and note; 294,
296, 299
Gregg, Josiah, cited, 189, note
Gregg, Diary and Letters of, ed. by Fulton
& Horgan, Vol. II rev'd by P. A. F. Wal-
ter, 343-346
358
NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
Grier, Major Wm. N., mention (1849), 203,
204, 205-6
Griffin, Dr. John S., diary (1846-7), edited
by Geo. W. Ames, rev'd by Reeve, 86-7
Griffin, Wm., mention (1881), 113
Grimshaw, Ira L., necrology, 88
Guerra, Fray Salvador de, at Sandia, 334
(note) ; at Isleta, 335 (note)
Guevara, Fray Miguel de, at Santa Fe, 332
(note) ; at San Ildefonso, 333 (note)
Hafen, L. R., cited, 280 (note), 292
(note), 310 (note)
Hall, James A., mention (1910), 178
Hall of Records, proposed, 251
Hallowell, John W., & N. Mex. Food
Administration (1917-8), 8 et seg.; 45,
47, 52
Hamilton, Pat, quoted, 182
Hammond, Geo. P., mention, 319 ; cited,
320-9 passim, 337
Hand, J. D., mention (1911), 181
Haro de la Cueva, Fray Pedro de, men-
tion, 331, 333
Harper, Allen G., book by, rev'd, 80-3
Hart, Simeon, 62-3
Hartmann, Father Julius, chaplain (1910),
180
Hatch, Edward, mention (1881), 113
Hays, Will, visited N. Mex. (1918), 48
"head rights," Texan, in N. Mex., 56
Heath, Sec'y H. H., diagram of Palace
(1867), 102, 105; personal data, 102-3;
122
Heflin, R. W., mention (1910), 173
Helmick, M. J.f war work (1918), 89
Henderson, Alice Corbin, mention, 95
Henderson, Wm. Penhallow, necrology, 95
Herbert, Philip T., lawyer of El Paso
(1861), 62, 63, 66, 72
Hewett, Edgar L., book by, rev'd, 83-5
Hidalgo, Fray Nicolas, at Santa Fe, 332
(note) ; at Sandia, 334 (note)
Hierro, Fray Juan del, at Santa Fe, 332
(note)
Historical Society, notes from annual
meeting, 251
Hobbs, Hulda, mention, 251
Hodge, Frederick W., and Benavides' Me-
morial, 319 ; corrected, 325 ; quoted, 325-6
Holloman, Reed, mention (1910), 178; 179
Horgan, Paul, with M. G. Fulton, rev. of
book by, 343-6
Hortega, Fray Pedro de, at Santa Fe, 332
(note)
Hoover, Herbert, in 1917, mention, 1-54
passim
"Horses in the Southwest, The Spread of
Spanish," by D. E. Worcester, 225-232
houses, valued (1850) at $1.00 and $2.00
per viga, 276
Howard, Russell, of Ariz., mention (1862),
74
Rowland, Andrew M., co-founder of
Shalam, 123-134 passim
Hubbell, Frank A., mention, 351
Hubbell, Judge Sidney, (1861), 69
Hudspeth, A. H., mention (1910), 173, 180,
183
Huerfano river, Mexican settlers (1859),
280 (note) ; 310 (note)
Hurtado, Fray Nicolas de, quoted (1682),
228*; mention, 334 (note)
Ibargaray, Fray Antonio de, at Santa Fe,
332 (note) ; at Nambe, 333 (note)
ice, war control (1917-8), 19
idols in New Mexico, early burning of, 340-1
Ilfeld, Arthur C., mention (1917), 25
Illustrated, N. Mex., written by Ritch, 98
"Indian Justice," by Irving McNeil, 261-270
interpreters', mission (1777), 142
Isbell N. Mex. Elevator Co., of Willard,
mention (1918), 29
Isleta pueblo, mission (1612), 334-5 and
note
Izquierdo, Fray Lope de, mention (1599),
321; 322, 323, 328
Jackson, Alex. M., named by Davis for chief
justice of Ariz., 74
Jaeger, Chas., war work (1918), 39
Jaffa, Nathan, mention (1910), 170
Jemez, mission work at (1777), 144-5
Jesus, Fray Juan de, mention, 334 (note)
Jesus Maria, Fray Francisco de, not
"Casanas," 84
Johnson, E. Dana, war work (1917-8), 39,
50
Johnson, J. L., commissioner (1867), 122
Johnson, N. E., war work (1918), 39
Johnston, M. R., acting food administra-
tor (1918), 38, 48 (note), 49, 51, 52
Jones, Andrius A., mention (1918), 38, 47,
49, 50; (1910), 177, 181
Jones, Chas. Irving, "Wm. Kronig, N. Mex.
Pioneer, 1849-60," 185-224, 271-311
Jones, Hester, reports Society's annual
meeting, 251
Jones, Samuel J., of Ariz., mention (1862),
M
Jones, W. Claude, lawyer at Mesilla (1861),
65-6
Jornada del Muerto, political significance
(1850's), 59; 70
INDEX
359
Joutel, Henry, quoted (1687), 229
Juan de Dios, a donado (1598), 321, 328
Juarez, Fray Juan, at Santa F6, 332
(note) ; at Isleta, 335 (note)
Jumanos, pueblo of, mention, 244
Keator, Myron B., 256-7
Keen, A. A., commissioner of public lands,
mention (1899), 117
Keleher, Julia, "The Land of Shalam,"
123-134
Kercheville, F. W., cited, 287 (note)
Kerr, H. L. war work (1917-8), 40
Kino, Padre Eusebio, quoted, 231
Kit-i-chin, subject of Mescalero "Indian
justice," (1908), 261-270
kivas destroyed by Spaniards, 85
Klock, George S., necrology, 90-1
Kronig, Wm., pioneer memories (1849-60),
185-224, 271-311
Labadie, Lorenzo, Indian agent (1861),
68-9
labor supply, in N. Mex. (1917-8), 34-37
Laforet bros., of Taos County (1850), men-
tion, 201, note
Lamy, Bishop J. B., mention, 284
Land Tenure Problems in the Santa Fe
Railroad Grant Area, by Mosk, rev'd, 249
Lane, Gov. Wm. Carr, champion of boun-
dary rights (1852), 57-8
La Port, a French Canadian at Red River
(1849), 201, 210, 213, 220, 271, 272-4,
276, 288
Larrazolo, O. A., mention (1918), 50, 53
La Salle, Sieur Robert, quoted, (1680's),
228
Las Vegas, described (1849), 192
Las Vegas Optic, in World War (1917-8),
44
Laughlin, Judge & Mrs. N. B., mention, 171
Laughlin, Mrs. Napoleon B., necrology,
257-8
Lawson, J. L., mention (1910), 173
Le Blanc, , a Canadian, mention
(1850's), 290-6 passim
Lenoir, Phil H., cited (1917), 20
Leroux, Antonio (or Joaquin ) . mention
(1849), 204
Letrado, Fray Francisco de, mention, 244,
245
Lever Act (1917), mention, 1
"Libraries, Two Colonial N. Mex. (1704,
1776)," by Eleanor B. Adams, 135-167
licensing system, used 1917-8 in N. Mex., 6
et seq.
Lindsey, Gov. W. E., cited (1918), 23, 50
livestock in N. Mex., war control (1917-8),
30-33, 39, 40
Lockwood, Dean Frank C., cited, 233
Lopez, Fray Diego, at Isleta, 335 (note)
Lorenzana, Fray Francisco Antonio de,
mention, 334 (note)
Lowber, C. H., field sec'y (1918), 38
Lucas, James A., Ariz, sec'y (1860's), 61,
66
Lucero, Antonio, quoted (1918), 37
Lugo, Fray AJonso de, mention, 320, 322,
327, 328
Lummis, Charles F., mention, 319 (note)
Luna, Solomon, mention (1910), 172
lynching, in Tucson (1873), 233-242, 312-
318
Lynde, Maj. Isaac, 70 (note) ; 71
LLana, Fray Jeronimo de la, mention, 335
(note)
Maas, Padre Otto, cited, 140
Mabry, Thos. J., "N. Mexico's Constitution
in the Making," 168-184
Magoffin, James, 63
Magoffin bros., mention (1849), 188
Mairones, Fray Luis, mention, 321, 322
Maldonado, Fray Lucas, mention, 334
(note)
Maloy, A. J. of Albuquerque, cited (1918),
12, 16, 40, 46
Marin, Jose Francisco, quoted (1693),
230-1
Marquez, Capt. Jer6nimo, mention, 339
Marta, Fray Bernardo de, discussed, 824,
325, 331; at Galisteo, 333; at Santo
Domingo, 334
Martin, a donado (1598), 321
Martin, Henry S., diagram of Palace
(1869), facing 97; 102, 104, 106, 108
Martinez, Fray Alonso, mention, 320, 321,
327
Martinez, Father [Antonio Jose], mention
(1850), 283, 284
Martinez, Felix, mention (1910), 177, 181
Martinez de Montoya, Capt. Juan, paper
by Scholes on, 337-342
Massanet, Father Damian, quoted (1689),
230
Maxwell, Lucien B., mention (1849), 203
McCanna, P. F., mention (1911), 181
McCullough, Rev. B. Z., of Santa Fe (1910),
180 (note)
McGill, W. R., mention (1911), 181
McKee, James Cooper, cited, 71 (note)
McLane, Don, killed (1908) by Indian cattle
thief, 263-270 passim
McLane, Roy, ranch foreman, 262-270 pas-
sim
McMurtrie, Douglas, mention 283 (note)
McNeil, Irving, "Indian Justice," 261-270
360
NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
McWillie, Judge M. H., of Ariz. Terr.
(1861), 69; 70
Meriwether, Gov. David, mention, 100
Mescalero Indians, 261-270 passim
Mesilla, town of, 55, 64-76 passim
Mesitta Times, quoted 60-71 passim; "dis-
union," 68
Mesilla Valley, and Texans (1848-51), 55-6,
57-8; Shalam in, 124
Miles, Gen'l Nelson A., mention (1S90), 117
Miller, J. O., of State College (1918), 36
Mills, Judge Wm. J., mention (1910), 169
Mills, W. W., at Mesilla (1861), quoted, 68
Minguez, Fray Juan, not a martyr, 84
Mirabal, Silvestre, of Valencia Co. (1889,
1910), 169
Miranda, Fray Pedro de, mention, 244
mission centers, ten early, 335
mission irregularities, reported (1777), 140-
5
Mitchell, Gov. Rob't B., 122
Mission Monuments of N. Mex., by Hewett
& Fisher, rev'd, 83-5
Monroe, Col. John, mention (1850), 168
Monroy, Fray Hernando de, mention, 335
(note)
Montes de Oca, Fray Jose de, mention, 334
(note)
Montoya, Nestor, mention (1910), 178
Mora County, Report (1881) as to, cited,
310 (note)
Morales, Fray Juan de, no such man, 84
Morales, Fray Luis de, at San Ildefonso,
333 (note)
Morris, Capt. R. M., at Ft. Craig (1861),
quoted, 67-8
mortgages, crop loans and, (1917-8), 19-
24
Mosk, Sanford A., rev. of book by, 249
Mother-Daughter Congress in Albuq.,
(1918), 44
Mountainair, N. M., and beans (1917), 24
Mowry, Sylvester, Ariz, editor (1860), 60,
63-4
Munoz, Fray Francisco de, mention, 334
(note)
Nambe, convent (1613), 33 and note
Neal, Benj., 61
Necrology: Grimshaw, Whelan, Augur,
Klock, Sears, Percy Wilson, Faircloth,
Sheldon Parsons, Wm. P. Henderson, 88-
95; Donnell, Keator, Mrs. Laughlin,
Britton, John W. Catron, 256-260 ; M. A.
Otero, 349-53
Need, Wm.. quoted, 62, 67, 79
neophytes, use of term (1777), 141-3
Newbrough, John B., founder of Shalam
(1885), 123-134 passim
Nordhaus, Max, of Albuquerque, war work
(1918), 49
Oahspc, The "New Bible," 126, 127
Oberg, Kalervo, book by, rev'd, 80-3
Ochiltree, Wm. M., mention (1861), 72
Oliva, Fray Alonso de la, mention, 321,
322, 329
Onate, Cristobal de, mention, 327 (note),
337, 340, 341
Onate, Don Juan de, mention, 320-330 pas-
sim; 337-342 passim
Orantia, Ignacio, lieut. gov. (1860), 61
Ordonez, Fray Isidro, mention, 324, 826,
330, 331, 332, 334, 335, 341
orphans, at Shalam, 128-9
Ortega, Dr. Joaquin, mention, 83
Osborne, D. K., mention (1883), 114-5
Otero, Gov. Miguel A., 117-8; 172; necrol-
ogy, 349-353
Ouray, Ute chief, 289 and note
Oury, G. H., 61, 72, 73
Owings, Lewis S., of Mesilla (1860), 61; 62
Pacheco, Fray Felipe, mention, 334 (note)
Pacheco de Heredia, Gov. Alonso, mention
(1642), 245 (note) ; quoted, 246
paintings, origin (1850) of some church,
277-9
Palace of the Governors, in Santa Fe, 97-
122
Pankey, B. F., war work (1918), 39, 40
Pappe, G. A., in war work (1917-8), 40-1
Paredes, Fray Joseph de, at Santo Domingo,
334 (note) ; at Isleta, 335. (note)
Parker, Frank W., mention (1910), 172,
176, 177, 183
Parraga, Fray Diego de, at Isleta, 835
(note)
Parsons, Sheldon, necrology, 95
Patagonia silver mine, 63, 64 (note)
Patterson, Green B., of Chaves Co. (1910),
170
Pearce, John C., Society curator (1888),
mention, 96
Pedraza, Fray Jeronimo de, mention, 331
Peinado, Fray Alonso de, mention, 325, 326,
331, 333, 335
Penitentes, mention (1850's), 285
peonage, and slavery, 77-8; a case (1850)
of, 274-5; 284, 296-7
Peralta, Fray Gaston de, mention, 821, 822,
323
Peralta, Don Pedro de, mention, 326, 334,
335, 341
INDEX
361
Perea, Fray Estevan de, and his rela-
ciones, 319 ; mention, 326, 331 ; at
Sandia (1610), 334; custodian, 336
Perea, Pedro, appointment as governor
lost, 351
Perez, Fray Antonio, at Santa Fe, 332
(note)
Perez Guerta, Fray Francisco, his relacion
verdadera cited, 325 (note), 331 (note) ;
mention, 332; cited, ibid.; at Galisteo
(1616), 333
Perguer, Fray Andres, mention, 332, 333
Pike, Albert, quoted (1831), 98
Pike, Lieut, Z. M., mention 292 and note
piloncillo, 290-1
Plasencia, Fray Juan de, mention, 334
(note)
Point of Rocks (in Colorado), mention
(1853), 305-6
politicians of New Mexico, associates of
M. A. Otero, 349
population, Mesilla Valley (1851), 56-7;
Ariz. (1860), 61; middle Rio Grande
valley, 81 ; census of 1749, 84
Posadas, Fray Alonso de, quoted (1686),
228
postmasters at Santa Fe, 1849 to date,
list, 254-5
Post Office, in Santa Fe (1883), 114-5; list
of postmasters, 254-5
Prada, Fray Juan de, quoted (1638), 226
price control, in N. Mex. (1917-8), 14-16
Prichard, Geo. W., mention, 98, 115-6 ; of
Santa Fe (1889, 1910), 169
Prince, L. Bradford, war work (1918), 39;
mention, 109, 111, 116, 171
Prince, Mrs. IA Bradford, mention, 171,
172
Pritchard, John O., war work (1918), 39
Pruitt, Arthur, war work (1918), 5 (note) ;
39, 40
Pumpelly, Raphael, cited, 59
Putney, R. E., quoted (1917-8), 6; 39, 47
Quinn, James H., of Taos (1850), 168, 221,
282, 290
Quinones, Fray Cristobal de, mention, 324,
326, 329
Quiros, Fray Cristobal de, mention, 329,
331 ; at Sia, 334 ; at Santo Domingo, 334
(note)
railroads, reach N. Mex., 97 ; in New Mex-
ico and California, early, 347
Rains, John, at Tucson (1861), 64
Ramirez, Fray Juan, two missionaries so
named, 84
Rankin, J. C., mention (1871), 103, note
ration cards (in 1917-18) opposed by
Hoover, 3; 11
Rayado, N. Mex. mention (1849), 200, 203
Raynolds, Justice Herbert F., mention, 183
Raynolds, J. Wallace, mention, 352
Reagan, John H., mention (1861), 72
Redington, Paul G., of Albuquerque (1917),
41
Red River (north of Taos), 200, 212, 220,
221, 222, 223, 271, 278
Red River, confused with Canadian, 191,
note; 200, note; 205
Reeve, Frank D., 7 ; book reviews by, 86-7,
249
Richardson, G. A., mention (1910), 173,
175
Rey, Agapito, mention, 319 (note)
Richardson & Rister, cited, 233, note
Rio Colorado. See Red River
Rio Grande, change in channel, 55 (note)
Rio Grande Valley, Man & Resources in the,
by Harper, Cordova, Oberg, rev'd, 80-3
Ritch, Wm. G., literary and promotion
activities, 98; 107, 111-115
Roberts, Clarence J., mention (1910), 172.
183
Robinson, Palatine, of Ariz., mention
(1862), 74
Rodey, Bernard S., mention, 352
Rodriguez, Fray Diego, at Santa Fe, 832
(note)
Rodriguez, Fray Felipe, at San Ildefon.so,
333 (note) ; as Nambe, ibid.; at Sandia,
334, (note)
Rosa Figueroa, Fray Francisco Antonio
de la, and his Bezerro General, 319, 320
Rosas, Fray Juan de, mention, 320, 322-3,
327, 328
Roslington, Geo., war work (1917-8), 40
Ruiz, Fray Joaquin, at Jemez (1776), 144
Sacristan, Fray Miguel, at Santa Fe, 832
(note) ; at Isleta, 335 (note)
Sadler, Judge D. K., quoted, 179
Saint Anthony, an image of, at Santa Fe
(c. 1852), 280
Salas, Fray Juan de, mention, 332 ; at
Isleta (1612), 334-5
Salazar, Fray Cristobal de, mention, 320,
321, 327
Salazar, Fray Francisco de, mention, 335
(2 notes)
Salmeron, Fray Pedro de, discussed, 324-5
San Buenaventura, Fray Juan de, mention,
321, 322, 323, 326, 327, 331
San Carlos, early settlement, mention
(1851), 292 and note
362
NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW
Sandia pueblo, mission (1610), 334 and
note
San Diego, Fray Tomas de, at Santa F£,
332 (note)
San Felipe, mission at, 329, 334, 335
San Gabriel, mention (1600), 321 (note
10) ; 323, 327, 329, 332, 333, 337, 339,
340
San Ildefonso, mention (1601), 328; early
mission, 332-3 and note ; 335
San Juan, Fray Alonso de, mention, 824,
326, 331
San Juan pueblo, Onate's headquarters, 327,
329, 333 ; early church, 335
San Lazaro, mission (1613), 333
San Luis Valley, 213, note
Sandoval, Alejandro, of Albuquerque (1889,
1910), 169
San Lucas, Fray Diego de, not a martyr, 84
San Miguel, Fray Francisco de, mention,
320, 322, 323, 327, 328
Santa Ana pueblo, a visita (1614), 334,
335
Santa Clara, early visita, 329 ; population
(c. 1650), 246
Santa Clara Springs, on Santa Fe Trail,
mention (1849), 191; 222
Santa Cruz de la Canada, mention (1849),
198
Santa Fe, books listed (1776) at mission,
164; impressions of, in 1849, 194-5; in
1610, 332; already named (1608), 341,
342
Santa Fe New Mexican, quoted (1917-18),
2-53 passim; 174, 179
Santa Fe Railroad, getting to California,
347
Santa Fe Trail, route to adventure, 97
Santo Domingo, library of the Custody at,
(1776), 145, 152-163; 165; (1600) 329;
early mission, 333-4
Saye, Albert B., rev. of book by, 247-8
Scholes, France V., cited, 135 ; "A Cor-
rection," 243-6 ; with L. B. Bloom, "Friar
Personnel . . . 1598-1629,"- 319-336;
"Juan Martinez de Montoya," 337-342
Sears, Herman D., necrology, 91
secession movement in N. Mex., 55-76
Second Nat'l Bank of Santa Fe, located
in Old Palace, 112
"Sectional Controversy, 1846-61, N. Mex.
and the,"' by L. M. Ganaway, (concl.)
55-79
Segovia, Fray Jeronimo de, at Santa Fe,
332 (note)
Seligman, Adolph, postmaster (1886-90),
116, 254
Seligman, Arthur, during war (1917-8), 49,
50-1
Senecu pueblo, convent in, 245-6
"Shalam: Utopia in N. Mex., The Land
of," by Julia Keleher, 123-134
Sherman, Jr., John, mention (1877), 114
Sia pueblo, mission (1613), 334 and note
Sibley, Gen'l Henry H., 74-6
Silva, Jesus, guide (1849), 204
Simpson, G., mention, 292-3
Sioux Indians, an incident (1853), 300-1
slave code of 1859, 78
Slavery controversy, in southern N. Mex.
(1850's), 61; Confed. legislation for
"Ariz.," 73
Sloan, Dr. J. H., mention, 116
Sloan, W. B., mention (1889), 112
Smith, Chas. Orchard, quoted (1918), 84
Smith, Geo. W., "N. Mexico's War Time
Food Problems, 1917-18," (concl.), 1-
54 ; mention, 96
Spiess, Chas. A., mention (1910), 172, 175
Springer, Chas., cited (1917), 5; 18, 21,
22, 25, 35, 39; mention (1910), 172, 183
Stover, E. S., of Albuquerque (1889, 1910).
169
Stamm, Roy A., war work (1918), 89
State Agricultural College, war work (1917-
8), 19, 33, 36, 38, 50
Stewart, Philip B., federal investigator,
(1918), 48
stockmen of N. Mex. (1917-8), 30-33
Suarez (Juarez), Fray Andres, mention,
332, 333, 334 (note)
sugar, war control in N. Mex. (1917-8), 10-
14, 18
Tabira pueblo, mention, 244
Tae, The First Church of, 123, 125
Talaban, Fray Juan, mention, 334 (note)
Taos, mention (1850), 283
Taos pueblo, convent, 246
Tavera, Fray Joseph, mention, 324, 326,
330 (note)
Taylor, M. D., mention (1910), 173
Taylor Act of 1934, mention, 249
Tecolote, on Santa Fe Trail, mention
(1849), 193
Territorial Bureau of Immigration, data
(1881) on, 310 (note)
Texan aggressions (1848), 56, 58
Texans, hatred of New Mexicans for, 28-9
Thomas, A. B., cited, 292 (note)
Tichy, Marjorie, reports Society accessions
(1943), 252-3
Tarado, Fray Luis de, mention, 332 (2
times)
Tittmann, E. D., mention (1910), 173, 176
INDEX
363
Tobalina, Fray Tomas de, mention, 334
(note)
Torija, Fray Gabriel de, mention, 334
(note)
Torres, Fray Tomas de, at Nambe, 333
(note) ; at Santo Domingo, 334 (note)
Toulouse, Joseph, mention, 251
Tonty, Henri de, quoted (1680's), 228, 229
Torquemada, Monarchia Indiana, cited, 323
(notes), 327, 339 (note)
Toulouse, J. H., field sec'y (1917-8), 38;
dispute with Ely, 44-7
Tubac, in 1853, 58-9
Tucson, lawless conditions (1853), 58-9;
convention (1856), 59; another (1860),
60 ; 70 ; book by Lockwood, rev'd, 85-6 :
in 1873, 233-242, 312-318
Turley the American, at Rio Hondo, men-
tion, 291 (note)
TwitchelJ, Ralph E., cited, 109, 137
U. S. Depository, in Santa Fe, 112, 113-4
Upson, Columbus, of Texas, mention
(1862), 74
Ute Indians, at Red River (1850), 281.
288-290
Utopia, in New Mexico, attempted, 123-134
Val, Fray Juan del, mention, 334 (note)
Valdez, Capt. Joso Maria, mention (1849;,
203, 204
Vargas, Don Diego de, personal library
(1704), 135, 136-9, 149-151
Velasco, Fray Cristobal de, mention, 334
(note)
Velasco, Fray Fernando de, mention, 334
(note) ; 335 (note)
Velasco, Fray Francisco de, cited (1609),
225 ; mention, 321, 322, 323, 324, 326, 339
Velasco, Gustavo R., rev. of book by, 250
Velez Cachupin, Gov. Tomas, used mission
library as a jail (1764), 141
Velez de Escalante, Fray Francisco, men-
tion (1776), 139-140
Vergara, Fray Pedro de, mention, 321, 322,
323, 326, 327, 331
Vetancurt, Fray Agustin de, and his
Teatro Mexicano, 319-320 ; errors, 325,
329, 332; 334
"Victory bread" (1917-8), 10
Vidania, Fray Juan de, at Santa Fe, 332
(note)
Viereck, , a German in Santa Fe and
Taos (1849), 195 et seq.
Vierra, Carlos, mention, 85
Vigil, Juan, a rico of Taos country (1850),
272
Vigil, Rodrigo, a rico (1850) of Red
River, 274-5
Villar, Fray Nicolas del, mention, 335
(note)
Villegas, Fray Pedro de, mention, 334
(note)
Vorenburg, Simon, of Wagon Mound,
quoted (1917), 26, 27
Wagner, Jonathan H., 34
Wallace, Gov. Lew, mention, 113
Walter, P. A. F., book revs., 80-3, 85-6,
343-6 ; necrologies, 88-94, 349-353 ; men-
tion (1910), 179
Walton, Wm. B., mention (1918), 51
Ward, S. S., owner of Flying H., 262
"Wartime Food Problems, 1917-18, N. Mex-
ico," (concl.) by Geo. W. Smith, 1-54
Watts, John, mention (1881), 113
Watts, John S., 68
Webb, James J., cited, 290, 310
Webster, Daniel, on N. Mex., 78
Wells Fargo Messenger, tips for travelers
quoted, 253-4
wheat in N. Mex. (1917-8), 1-54 passim
Whelan, Thos. A., necrology, 88-9
White tragedy, at Point of Rocks (Oct.
1849), military measures recounted, 202-
209
Whiting, Major H. R., mention (1910). 176
Wilson, Earl J., of HiUsboro, quoted (1918),
24
Wilson, Percy, necrology, 92-3
Wilson, Pres. Woodrow, in 1917-18, men-
tion, 1, 36
Wirts, Surgeon H. R., mention (1849),
200, 201, 202
wolves in New Mexico, timber, 287
Wooton, Dick, mention, 97
Worcester, D. E., "The Spread of Spanish
Horses on the Southwest," 225-232
Ximenez, Fray Lazaro, cited (1608), 225,
note; mention, 324, 326, 330, 331, 337, 341
Ybargaray. See Ibargaray
Zamora, Fray Francisco de, mention, 320,
322, 323, 327, 328
Zamorano, Fray Juan de, at Nambe, 333
(note)
Zaldivar, Juan de, mention, 339
Zaldivar, Vicente de, mention, 340
Zarate, Fray Asencio de, at Santa Fe, 332
(note)
Zarate Salmeron, Fray Geronimo de, his
relacion discussed, 243-6 passim; 319
Zavaleta, Fray Juan de, mention, 335
(note)
Zuni missions (1640's), 245; convents, 246
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